Tottenham Hotspur hero Harry Kane represented Arsenal as a youngster but wasn't deemed good enough for the Gunners
Arsenal's decision-makers allowed Harry Kane to slip through their academy ranks as they believed future Wolves player, Benik Afobe, possessed the qualities needed to succeed ahead of the Tottenham legend.
Kane, 32, went on to bag 280 goals for Spurs and became England's record goalscorer. His massive £120 million switch to Bayern Munich in August 2023 has already seen him find the net an incredible 113 times for the German club.
However, things could have been vastly different if Arsenal bosses hadn't preferred Afobe over Kane, who had joined the Gunners aged just eight. Afobe progressed through Arsenal's youth system alongside Kane but later represented Wolves, Arsenal's Premier League opponents this weekend, on three separate occasions.
Afobe, currently plying his trade for Al-Arabi in the UAE at 32, managed 29 goals for the Midlands outfit. The DR Congo international also featured for Bournemouth in the Premier League but never came close to matching Kane's impact on the top flight.
Kane was reportedly thought to be carrying some "puppy fat" during his youth and was considered a poor runner. Arsenal simply felt that Afobe was the superior talent of the pair, believing he was more athletic, sharper in front of goal and stronger in physical battles.
Arsenal perhaps cannot be entirely criticised for choosing Afobe ahead of Kane, though. Afobe had attracted interest from Barcelona before penning his first professional deal, such was his potential at the time.
Injuries significantly hindered Afobe from reaching his potential in north London, leading to his departure for Wolves in 2014 after several loan spells.
Kane later confessed that being released by Arsenal, the team he supported as a child, after just one season fuelled his ambition to reach the pinnacle of football.
"Yeah, probably throughout my whole career, really," Kane said in September 2024. "Starting from when I was eight years old being released from Arsenal. That might have built a bit of desire to prove to them when I was that age."
Arsenal's former academy chief Liam Brady, a legendary figure at the club, conceded that the "buck stops with him" over Kane, despite not personally making the decision.
Kane joined Spurs at the age of 11 but nearly faced release as a teenager. He had to fight to establish himself at Spurs after being loaned out to Leyton Orient and Norwich, with additional loan spells at Millwall and Leicester.
Kane was finally given his first Premier League start under Tim Sherwood. However, it was Mauricio Pochettino who truly championed him and credits Kane's 90th-minute winner at Aston Villa in November 2014 as the goal which saved his job during a challenging period.
Former Arsenal academy boss Roy Massey, a highly respected figure, has also previously admitted that telling Kane he wasn't good enough remains one of the toughest conversations he's ever had.
Whilst they're currently performing well in the league, Arsenal will undoubtedly reflect on their mistake with Kane that proved to be extremely costly, not just in terms of goals, but also for their future finances.