Cristiano Ronaldo has long been an example to follow for Harry Kane, whose performances of late have led to him being mentioned in the same breath as the Real Madrid superstar.

The pair went head to head in the Champions League on Tuesday as Tottenham came away from the Santiago Bernabeu with a commendable 1-1 draw – Ronaldo netting from the penalty spot after Kane had forced Raphael Varane into an own goal.

Kane’s form this season – the 24-year-old already has 15 goals for club and country, despite not finding the net once in August – prompted Madrid head coach Zinedine Zidane to describe him as ‘the complete forward’, a compliment often bestowed on the talismanic Ronaldo.

The pair swapped shirts following Tuesday’s draw, with the battle lines to be drawn again at Wembley on November 1.

‘I asked for his shirt,’ Kane said, in quotes reported by the Daily Mail. ‘He’s a big role model of mine, watching him when I was growing up.

‘It’s a nice shirt to get and frame. I gave him my shirt. I don’t know what he’ll do with it. We just said, ”See you in a couple of weeks.”

‘It was a great night for us. We can be proud of it, the fans can be proud and the whole club can be proud.

‘It was a big statement. A few years ago we were playing Europa League and to come here to the Bernabeu and put in a performance like that – we drew and maybe could have won – shows what kind of team we are.

‘It will give us confidence for the Premier League. We’ve shown we can do it against the best team in the world. It’s a good incentive for us.

‘Everyone put in an amazing shift. For the majority of the game we matched them. We wanted to prove to everyone we are a very good team and we want to take that on for the rest of the season. We have to keep improving,’ he said.

-This story originally appeared on FourFourTwo.co.za