Harry’s heroics edge him closer to becoming England’s most-capped player

It takes something really special for something in football to become a foregone conclusion. Ronaldo executing a step-over, Messi slaloming through players like a gazelle with elasticated limbs and Kevin De Bruyne dissecting an entire defence with a single, pin-point pass are three of a handful which have become aligned to that particular phrase during recent years. 

Harry Kane scoring goals is another. 

The Bayern Munich striker further engraved his name into the history books by hitting 100 caps for England on Tuesday evening, scoring his 67th and 68th goals for the Three Lions as they breezed past Finland 2-0 in the UEFA Nations League. 

Kane’s two second-half strikes came in the latter stages of a rain-soaked tie played out under the arches of the national stadium. It was not, as it often isn’t, a classic. Finland, knowing their limitations and the strength of their opposition, set up with a low-block and defended compactly. They did so effectively, too, frustrating Lee Carsley’s side, who relentlessly pinched and probed the Scandinavians back 11 to no avail in the first-half, relying on the odd half-chance to keep the Wembley crowd remotely entertained without the use of paper aeroplanes. 

On such an important evening for Kane, who became only the 10th player in history to reach the 100-game milestone for England, it was clear that he wanted to mark the occasion in trademark style by scoring a goal or two – underlined most glaringly by his seven shots on goal, five of which were on target. In truth, he was unfortunate to find Finland stopper Lukas Hradecky in such solid form, the Bayer Leverkusen keeper continuously rebuffing his early efforts to add to his record-leading tally of 66 goals. 

In the end, though, due to a combination of Kane’s desire, Carsley’s faith in keeping his captain on the pitch and England’s supporting cast doing what they do best, the deadlock was finally broken in the 57th minute when the bespoke gold boot situated on Kane’s right foot blasted an emphatic strike into the roof of the net. Just 20 minutes later it was two, Kane capitalising on an artistic piece of build-up play started by Trent Alexander-Arnold, who found Noni Madueke with an incisive pass before the Chelsea man laid on an inch-perfect cross for the Bayern hitman to almost effortlessly sweep home.

With the all-time goal record already broken some time ago, and 100 caps now amassed, Kane’s next – perhaps final – milestone is the most significant: becoming England’s most capped ever player. He is just 20 shy of Wayne Rooney’s outfield tally of 120, and 25 short of Peter Shilton’s record of 125. At just 31 years of age, the former Spurs man still has time firmly on his side as he bids to claim such a coveted accolade. 

It remains to be seen whether his importance to England in the post-Southgate era will remain as significant as it has been for the next European Championship in four years time; it is likely that it will, should he stave off any severe injuries and continue performing at this level from now until then. What is more foreseeable is that Kane will remain in situ as England’s main man for the next World Cup in 2026, as the Three Lions bid to end what could by then be a colossal 60 years of hurt in the US, Canada and Mexico. 

With so much talk surrounding Kane’s underperformance at Euro 2024, where it was obvious that his ineffectiveness was largely due to a lack of full fitness and an ongoing back injury which plagued the end of his domestic season in Germany, Kane reminded everybody of his unfiltered quality during an otherwise forgettable Nations League fixture at Wembley on Tuesday. 

So much has been made of his lack of career silverware despite an obvious abundance of talent but it must be remembered that this is a player who is just 26 appearances shy of becoming England’s all-time highest appearance maker; a player who has made more appearances than any for England at major international tournaments (29) and scored the most goals at said tournaments (15).

Finland became the 45th different country Harry Kane has faced whilst playing for England, and he has scored against all but 10 of them. His two goals on Tuesday night brought his total to 26 at the national stadium – yet another record he holds for the men’s senior team. Captain Kane looked back to his best after being kept quiet against Ireland on Saturday, and on a night where the spotlight was shining brighter than usual across his shoulders, he put on a gold-standard display befitting those shimmering boots.