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If you had told me in 2009 that Harry Kane would go on to win the Ballon d'Or and become England's most-capped player, I would have called you crazy.
For context, I came through the Spurs academy with Harry and many other talented players who went on to play in the Premier League and represent their country.
Harry wasn't the best player in our youth team; in fact, at the time, I'm not sure I would have put him in the top five.
Spurs had invested heavily in the future, buying the likes of Kyle Walker and Kyle Naughton for a combined fee of £9 million from Sheffield United, Danny Rose from Leeds for £1m, Dean Parrett for £2m from QPR, John Bostock from Crystal Palace for £750k, plus five other players for smaller fees.
Alongside them were our homegrown players: Andros Townsend, Ryan Mason, Adam Smith, Jake Livermore, Tom Carroll, Alex Pritchard, and many others.
I remember looking around the changing room, wondering who would be the ones to go on and make it to the very top. I was all too aware of how slim our actual chances were.
Out of the 1.5 million boys playing organised youth football in England at any one time, only about 180 will ever make a single appearance in the Premier League. That's a success rate of just 0.012%.
Interestingly, the one I held the highest hopes for, Yaser Kasim, never actually played in the Premier League, but he did go on to play professional football and rack up 21 caps for the Iraq national team.
Driven to succeed
It was an incredible environment to be part of. We were all so driven to be the very best that we were constantly told off for doing extra work in the afternoon when we should have been resting! Gym sessions, ice baths, foam rollers, tennis balls, recovery tights, and a good night's sleep were all part of the daily routine.
The academy was run by John McDermott, who is now the FA technical director; we had Alex Inglethorpe, current Liverpool academy manager, in charge of the U18s, and we had Chris Ramsey, who is currently working with England, in charge of the U16s. We were very fortunate to have such incredible coaches whose passion for the game and dedication to our development were second to none.
Harry, despite not being the quickest, strongest, or best technically, had a mentality that I remember well. He was very headstrong; he never ever shied away from wanting the ball, and he worked tirelessly.
He was never one of the loud characters or too vocal around the place, but was always quietly confident. He was just so confident in his own ability, with a self-assuredness about him. That always stood out for me.
The loan route
Harry's first loan spell was with Leyton Orient, where he made 18 league appearances and scored five goals, helping them finish seventh in League One. The Orient chairman at the time, Barry Fry, reportedly told Harry Redknapp after the loan spell that he thought Harry Kane would have no chance of ever playing for Spurs.
Despite that, Harry returned from that spell and made his debut in August 2011 against Hearts in the Europa League.
After his debut, he was sent on loan to Championship club Millwall, where he managed to score seven goals in 22 appearances and won Millwall's young player of the season award.
In the summer of 2012, he was loaned to Premier League club Norwich City, but injuries limited his game time.
His final loan spell was then with Championship club Leicester City as they pushed for promotion. He managed 13 appearances, scoring twice.
Having gone on loan myself and experienced it, I can tell you walking into a men's dressing room at a young age is very different.
I walked into Yeovil Town at 17. You're there in and amongst a dressing room where people are paying for their mortgage. The win bonus goes towards their rent and food for their family.
Taking that weight on is quite a big difference from playing academy football, where there's no pressure on you if you miss chances or make mistakes.
To go from that to playing in front of crowds with the manager's job on the line is a completely different kind of pressure. But it's an amazing experience that helps you develop as a professional, and it gives you a big advantage because, when you return to your parent club, you bring a different mindset and perspective.
Seizing the opportunity
It wasn't until Harry came back to Spurs and Tim Sherwood gave him the opportunity in the Premier League that his career really took off.
Harry hit the ground running with 31 goals in 51 games in his first full season with the club under Mauricio Pochettino. He was labelled a one-season wonder by many, but this just seemed to motivate him more.
Harry played a total of 320 games for Spurs in the Premier League before moving on to Bayern Munich, scoring 213 goals and becoming the second-highest goalscorer in the league's history behind Alan Shearer (on 260 goals).
He is also England's greatest-ever goalscorer and on Thursday will break Peter Shilton's all-time appearance record.
I had a similar path to Harry, actually: I made my Spurs debut in a cup game off the back of my loan spell with Yeovil. After a couple more loan spells with Bristol City and Swansea, and when I actually got my chance in the Premier League with Tottenham, it was like returning home.
Unlike Harry, I only stayed for the season, but it's a different kind of feeling when you're playing for the club where you came through. You're playing for the club that's given you the opportunity, and it does mean that little bit more.
Harry has gone on to surpass all of us from the Spurs youth team with his incredible individual achievements, topped by deservedly winning the Ballon d'Or in October.
His game has evolved year after year, and I personally think he should now go down in history as England's greatest player.
I think Harry's incredible journey has something that we can all learn from. For me, it's a stark reminder that life isn't a sprint. Some of us are ahead of the curve before others, but without the right mentality to stay there, we will soon be overtaken.
Well done, H. What you have achieved so far is simply incredible, and I know you're not done yet.