Kane & Guirassy in huge striker showdown

Kane’s start to the season is already one for the history books. Across the opening six matchdays of the league term, he has found the back of the net a record 11 times, failing to strike in just one game. RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim have faced the full extent of his wrath, with Kane bagging a hat-trick against both of them.

His crisp drive in a 3-0 win at in-form Frankfurt just before the international break earned praise from beaten Eintracht boss Dino Toppmöller, who said: "The way he shot it into the bottom corner was world-class."

Watch: Kane smashes hat-trick at Hoffenheim

The England captain has not only been wreaking havoc in the top flight, either. He has scored four times in two UEFA Champions League games, including a brace against FIFA Club World Cup champions Chelsea, while he was also at the double against Wehen Wiesbaden in the DFB Cup first round and scored versus VfB Stuttgart in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup.

Wherever you look, Kane is entering uncharted territory. He recently became the quickest player this century to rack up 100 goals for a club plying their trade in Europe’s top five leagues (104 games), ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo and Erling Haaland (both 105), and the 78 minutes he needs per Bundesliga goal are also a record (amongst players with at least 25 strikes).

Watch: All Kane's goals so far this season

A delighted Bayern sporting director Christoph Fruend recently said: "It's not normal to manage to score goals like that. There are very, very few players like him around the world."

Coach Vincent Kompany praiseed Kane's mentality ahead of Der Klassiker, saying he has "unlocked his next level by himself."

Kompany added: "He's always done that, even when I was playing against him. That's the mentality that he's created every year. Maybe it helped that he didn't win a title for a long time, meaning he kept up that hunger. He shows his quality, not just with goals but also how he gets others involved."

There is almost no keeping up with Kane, but try telling Guirassy that. The Guinea international features in fifth place on that list of time per Bundesliga goal with 115 minutes per strike, underlining his fantastic goalscoring form since signing for VfB Stuttgart from Rennes in September 2022.

Last season’s Champions League top goalscorer and second only to Kane in the Bundesliga in 2024/25, Guirassy has enjoyed an impressive start to the term that has perhaps gone under the radar in the shadow of Kane’s eye-watering numbers. 

Watch: Guirassy's first four goals in 2025/26

Dortmund, like Bayern are still unbeaten across all competitions this season, and that is in part down to the 29-year-old’s six goals in eight outings (in all competitions) as well as two assists.

The timing of his goals has been perhaps the best bit about them. Guirassy opened the scoring in each of Dortmund’s first three Bundesliga games, as well as in the DFB Cup victory over Rot-Weiss Essen.

The only criticism of Guirassy would be his occasional wastefulness. While Kane has scored seven of his eight big chances in the Bundesliga this term and has needed fewer than two shots per goal, Guirassy has netted only half of his own six big chances and requires more than double as many shots to strike.

Still, those stats suggest he has not yet hit top form – a frightening prospect for opposition defences when he does.

Kovač likened Guirassy to "an insurance policy" ahead of Der Klassiker.

The Dortmund coach said: "If Serhou scores the goals this year that he scored last year, he will certainly have a very good and successful season. That is what I wish for, that is what I hope for, and I hope that after the international break he can show everything he is capable of, because we are very much dependent on him."

Indeed, this weekend, Guirassy might be even more eager than usual to net considering he is yet to score in each of his four matches against Kane in his career. That does not mean he is totally without success against Bayern, though, having scored against the record champions in 2022/23 while still at Stuttgart

Kane, on the other hand, has enjoyed more positive moments against both Guirassy and Dortmund. He has three goals in the four match-ups with his fellow centre-forward so far, while he has seven efforts in eight games against the Black-Yellows – more than against any other outfit outside England.

Yet, despite the alarming rate at which these two strikers beat opposing goalkeepers, neither was on the scoresheet as Bayern and Dortmund shared the spoils in both Bundesliga matches last season. 

In this Klassiker, with Dortmund being Bayern’s current closest domestic challenger, Kane and Guirassy’s contributions could go a long way to shaping the emerging title race, even at this point of the season.