Will Lankshear’s opening chapter at Middlesbrough has been nothing short of sensational, prompting many to wonder whether Tottenham have inadvertently sold the next Harry Kane. The young striker arrived at the Riverside Stadium for a fee that could ultimately rise to £20 million, and he has already begun to justify that price tag. In his very first appearance, Lankshear delivered a decisive volley against Wrexham in the Carabao Cup, and he followed that up with a brace that rescued Boro from a bleak start to their Championship campaign against Lincoln City. Scott Chickelday, the striker coach who has worked one‑on‑one with Lankshear for the past two seasons, was quick to point out that the reaction to the transfer was initially mixed.
“A lot of people questioned it,” he told Sky Sports, “but those same people are now looking at it and thinking, ‘Hang on, we might have got a bit of a bargain here.’” Chickelday’s confidence in the 21‑year‑old is not baseless; he has spent time coaching elite Premier League forwards and rates Lankshear as the best finisher among them. “He has every type of finish in his arsenal – the little flicks around the corner, tap‑ins, headers, volleys – a complete No 9. There aren’t many players like that at the moment.
His finishing is incredible. I tell people and they laugh, but this boy is the closest thing I’ve seen to Harry Kane,” he said. The comparison to Kane is bold, especially given Kane’s status as England’s all‑time leading scorer and a former European Golden Shoe winner. Yet the parallels extend beyond raw statistics.
Both players have experienced loan spells that were not instant successes, both have shown a relentless work ethic, and both possess a natural instinct for goal that is amplified by countless hours of extra training. Lankshear’s loan journey began with a stint at West Bromwich Albion that ended without a single goal. The next move, however, to Oxford United proved more instructive, even though the club suffered relegation from the Championship that season.
Matt Bloomfield, who took over as Oxford head coach in January, recalled the impact Lankspear had on a side fighting at the foot of the table. “Will was a big step for us,” Bloomfield explained. “He had been out on loan before and it hadn’t quite worked out, but at Oxford he worked incredibly hard, gave everything on the pitch, and that effort helped him grow.” The coaching staff focused on improving his hold‑up play and his ability to become a nuisance for opponents when the ball was cleared, essential traits for a striker in a team that often found itself without possession. In the context of a struggling Oxford side, Lankshear still managed to net 11 goals in the Championship – a respectable return for a teenager with limited senior experience.
Chickelday praised the achievement, noting that scoring that many times in a relegated team demonstrates both mental toughness and a knack for finding chances when they are scarce. At Middlesbrough, where the style of play is more possession‑based, Lankshear will have far more opportunities to showcase his talent. Bloomfield believes the shift will be advantageous: “Middlesbrough dominate the ball, which will suit Will even more. He is born to score, he is obsessed with finding the net, and all he wants to do is train and score.” The laser‑focused mentality that both Bloomfield and Chickelday attribute to Lankshear mirrors the drive that has defined Kane’s career.
“He is a lovely lad but he has an edge to him,” Chickelday said. “He wants to be successful.
All the top players are single‑minded and driven.” Bloomfield added, “He has massive natural instinct, but you can see the hours of practice too. It’s the same with Harry Kane – they’re born goal‑scorers, but they also work incredibly hard at their craft.” Lankshear’s dedication is evident in his training habits. After regular sessions, he would often stay on the pitch to finish extra shots, prompting coaches to physically pull him away to preserve his legs for the next day’s match. This extra work has become routine: he arrives 40 minutes before a session, completes a warm‑up, spends an hour with Chickelday on finishing drills, and then adds another 25‑30 minutes of running after the session ends.
His older brother Alex, who also plays for Gateshead, sometimes joins these extra workouts, turning them into a family affair. What does Lankshear focus on during these sessions? Chickelday describes a regimen of repetitive match‑scenario drills: headers, volleys, cut‑back finishes, and a variety of shooting angles. One standout moment was a goal Lankshear scored for Oxford against Sheffield Wednesday, a classic Kane‑style strike where he cut inside from the left and curled the ball into the top corner.
“He likes to drift out on the left and cut inside, but whatever he can do with his right foot he can also do with his left. That unpredictability makes him dangerous,” Chickelday noted. His ruthlessness in front of goal and his high conversion rate are supported by statistics: among the 72 Championship players who recorded 50 or more shots last season, Lankshear ranked third for expected goals per shot.
Beyond the standard finishing work, Chickelday believes Lankshear has untapped potential as a free‑kick specialist. “He never gets to take them, but he is a really good free‑kick taker,” he said, hinting at another dimension to the striker’s game that could be refined in the coming years. The ambition driving Lankshear is crystal clear.
“He wants to be the best, the No 1 striker in England, and eventually the No 1 in the world,” Chickelday asserted. He even suggested that within two years, Lankshear could be positioned as Kane’s successor at the national level.
While transfer speculation is premature – Bloomfield warned that Middlesbrough would “kill” him if rumors got out – the coach believes the striker is only two moves away from a £100 million valuation if his development continues on its current trajectory. For now, the immediate goal is to help Middlesbrough return to the Premier League. Those who have worked closely with Lankshear are convinced that his rise is inevitable. “I have absolutely no doubt about that,” Bloomfield concluded.
“Will is going to the very top.”