Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane hopes a shift in mentality will help England have a successful Fifa World Cup in Russia.
England’s newly appointed captain was speaking before the Three Lions depart for their base near St. Petersburg on Tuesday as preparations ramp up for their opening Group G fixture with Tunisia on Monday.
The 24-year-old says England are eager to make their mark on the World Cup and vowed they would approach it on the front foot.
‘The aim is to be aggressive and brave. That’s what we are trying to instil into the team. We want to take this tournament head on,’ Kane told a news conference.
‘There will be tough moments and there will be ups and downs. But for us, it’s to play attacking football, to score, and that’s important.
‘Sometimes going into a big tournament is about not losing and being passive. But for us, it’s about winning the first game, second game and to take that attitude to the World Cup.’
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The showpiece event in Russia will be Kane’s first World Cup, having previously played for England at Euro 2016 and in the 2015 U21 European Championship, but the Tottenham striker wants to break his record of ducks at major tournaments.
‘It’s something I want to change, hopefully this summer,’ Kane said.
‘I’ve always felt you go through spells: the ball goes in sometimes and other times it doesn’t, like in August every year for me. That’s part of the game.
‘But I always look at my game and see how I can get better. So that’s big tournaments. I want to score in tournament football and that’s what I will try and do.’
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Kane added that he regards national team achievements higher than those at club level.
‘It’s hard to look beyond the World Cup. It’s the one competition everybody dreams of winning,’ he said.
‘Obviously I understand you’ve got the Champions League and Premier League – so many big competitions – but, for me, I don’t think it gets much bigger than the World Cup.
‘I would love to win everything with Tottenham but, for me, personally, the World Cup outweighs them all.’
