Harry Kane responded gingerly and bluntly when asked about his German language skills at the Ballon d'Or ceremony on Monday night. 

The Bayern Munich hitman was picking up the Gerd Muller trophy for best striker - an award he shared with Kylian Mbappe, though the Frenchman was not present after Real Madrid decided to boycott the ceremony due to believing that Rodri was set to beat Vinicius Junior to the Ballon d'Or gong. 

Kane scored 44 goals in all competitions last season after leaving Tottenham for Bayern in a £100million move but ended the campaign trophyless. 

The England captain has acclimatised to life in Germany, moving into a £30million mansion in an area dubbed the 'Beverly Hills of Bavaria' with his wife Kate and their four kids. 

However, when asked if his German was getting better on Monday night, one word was enough: 'Nein.'

He added: 'I'm learning. I'm doing two lessons a week. We have a good teacher there at FC Bayern. 

'For me it's difficult, but hopefully I'll be there for many years and at some stage be able to talk a little German.'

This is not the first time that Kane has been pressed, rather awkwardly, to offer an update on his linguistic progress.

After Bayern Munich knocked Real Madrid out of the Champions League last December, presenter Laura Woods and pundit Rio Ferdinand asked him to demonstrate some of the phrases he had been learning.

However, the striker was unwilling to offer a glimpse into his education. 'Nah, I can't. I'm saving that for the summer when we're there for the Euros,' he said. 

'But I'm doing a couple of lessons a week, so...'

Woods then jokingly interjected: 'Not well then?' 

That moment of German revelation never did arrive over the summer, though with a contract until June 2027 he still has plenty of time to improve.

Besides, at the rate he's banging in the goals, the language barrier doesn't seem to matter.