England captain, Harry Kane says he’s optimistic the Three Lions will be ready for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar despite having a disappointing performance in the UEFA Nations League.
Recall that England were relegated to the second tier of the tournament despite fighting back from 2-0 down to draw 3-3 with Germany last night.
In a chat with Channel 4, the Tottenham striker said that the team should not be judged by their performance in the UEFA Nations League.
“The boys have been under pressure with recent results and we all came out here with a point to prove,” Kane told Channel 4.
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“There are lessons we can still learn from the mistakes we made, but we scored three goals and I feel like this will put us in a positive mindset ahead of the World Cup.
“We’re going to have to be ready come the start of the tournament. Major tournament football is different to any other football you play for England.
“The pressure is high and the concentration has to be high and I feel like we respond well to that.”
He added, “We will go away with our clubs and hopefully, everyone goes away fit, strong and ready to come back in November.”
Criticism
Beginning in 2020, Kane started to be criticised about a perceived tactic of backing into defenders jumping for headers, causing the players to fall backwards onto the pitch, potentially risking serious injury. After doing so to Brighton & Hove Albion player Adam Lallana and winning a penalty, Kane was criticised by ex-Arsenal player Martin Keown who said, “He looks at his opponent, knows what he is going to do and makes a back for him. I think it is dangerous play from Harry Kane and he knows what he is doing and I don’t even think it is a penalty.” However, this tactic has been defended by Crystal Palace defender Gary Cahill who said, “I think that’s just part of football. I think an element of that is being clever and experienced and knowing when you can maybe draw a foul in.”
