Harry Kane’s first England goal has been met with a typically overexcited response. The 21-year-old is already being tipped as the saviour of English football, despite his only international first-team experience being a 20 minute cameo against Lithuania.
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Kane certainly looks like the real deal. His 29 goals in all competitions for Tottenham Hotspur so far this season have been spread across an impressive purple patch, which suggests that his incredible run of form might not be just a flash in the pan.
He took just 78 seconds to open his account for the Three Lions, and that’s an achievement regardless of the standard of opposition. Kane, who was quoted by Sky Sports, described the moment as a ‘dream come true’, and it’s hard to argue with the fact that his progress this season couldn’t have been much better if he’d written the script for it himself.
What’s important now, is that we – as fans of the England team – don’t ramp up the pressure on him. England players have regularly endured the wrath of their own supporters, which seems to grow more intense with every major tournament that passes us by.
It’s easy to understand that frustration, by the time we travel to France for the Euro’s next summer, we won’t have reached the semi-finals of any tournament for 20 years – a terrible statistic for a team with such a proud history in the game.
So many incredible players have come and gone in that time, including the so-called ‘golden generation’ of the mid-2000s. Very few of them have lived up to their potential, and it’s important that a goal against the 94th best team in the world doesn’t already have us lauding Kane as the next big thing.
Sterner tests are to come, starting on Tuesday evening with the friendly against Italy. With Danny Welbeck struggling with injury, Kane will likely make his first England start in Turin, playing alongside captain Wayne Rooney.
His style and approach is obviously very different to that of the Arsenal man, and naturally goes against the style that Hodgson has spent the last year plus encouraging – with Raheem Sterling playing just behind the versatile front two.
Kane is an out and out centre forward, an old fashioned type of player in many respects. It’s easy to see why he’s been compared in the press to Alan Shearer, with his strength, power and finishing ability all making him a fearsome prospect.
What’s important is that we, and England, give him time to develop his potential. He must go back to the Under 21s in the summer, and play in their European Championship campaign. He then needs several weeks of rest after a long season, so that he’s fresh and ready to go again next year!
Is Kane going to be a future England hero? It’s too soon to say…
Watch Kane’s goal from last night in the clip below: