Harry Kane netted a 44th minute penalty during England’s 2-1 victory over Italy in the Euro 2024 qualifiers to become their all-time leading goalscorer.
The Tottenham forward erased memories of his crucial penalty miss in England’s World Cup quarterfinal loss to France in December by converting a penalty kick to give the visitors a 2-0 halftime lead in Naples.
“It had to be a penalty, and once it hit the back of the net, huge emotion,” Kane told Channel 4. “A magical moment.”
The England captain scored his 54th goal for his country, surpassing Wayne Rooney’s previous record of 53 goals for the Three Lions, on his 81st international appearance.
“I knew it wouldn’t take long but that was quick,” Rooney posted on Twitter. “Great man, unbelievable goalscorer and an England legend. Congrats Harry.”
In February, Kane also broke Jimmy Greaves’s record of 266 goals to become Tottenham’s top scorer.
“To be a part of that is amazing. I just want to say a big thanks to all my teammates, the staff, the fans, my family back home and my wife,” added Kane after England’s first win away to Italy since 1961.
“Just a really special night for me and a night I will never forget. I’m just really proud.”
The 29-year-old scored his first goal for his country when he came on as a substitute against Lithuania at Wembley in March 2015.
Before the 2018 World Cup, Gareth Southgate named him captain. He led England to the semi-finals and won the Golden Boot with six goals in Russia.
England scored four more goals at Euro 2020, putting them in a major final for the first time since 1966.
Kane’s two goals at the 2022 World Cup made him England’s top scorer at major tournaments, passing Gary Lineker.
But a career full of personal achievements is still missing collective glory.
Kane hasn’t won a big trophy for either his club or his country.
As well as the near-misses for England, he was on the losing side when Tottenham reached the Champions League final for the first time in their history in 2019, going down 2-0 to Liverpool in Madrid.
With just over a year left on his contract and interest from Manchester United and Bayern Munich, there is more talk about what will happen with him at his club.
Photo by EPA/CIRO FUSCO
