Harry Kane named men's Player of the Year in Germany

Bayern Munich star striker Harry Kane has been named men's Player of the Year in a vote organized by the Kicker, the German sports magazine said on Sunday.

Bayern boss Vincent Kompany was named Coach of the Year, while Bayern defender Giulia Gwinn won the women's Player of the Year award.

England captain Kane came out on top with 272 votes, ahead of his French team-mate Michael Olise (203 votes). VfB Stuttgart striker Deniz Undav (61 votes) finished a distant third.

In the poll, in which 656 members of the Association of German Sports Journalists (VDS) cast their ballots, Kane was recognized for his outstanding previous season, during which he scored 61 goals in 51 competitive matches, leading Bayern to the Bundesliga and German Cup titles.

"It was the beast season of my career so far," Kane said on Wednesday when he was presented with the Golden Shoe for best player in Europe.

The forward is among the top favourites to win the Ballon d'Or.

In the vote for Coach of the Year, Kompany received 314 votes, with last year's winner Julian Schuster of Freiburg (87 votes) and VfB Stuttgart boss Sebastian Hoeness (53 votes) trailing far behind.

Gwinn, meanwhile, shared the award with goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger last year, but this time around she solely took the trophy with 106 votes.

"This is an honour and a validation of my journey," Gwinn said.

Her victory came as a surprise because she struggled with injuries during the previous season.

"I didn't expect to win this year," Gwinn admitted: "That's why my first thought was, 'Really, me?'"