HARRY Kane wasn’t on the pitch to take a penalty in England’s shootout victory over Switzerland. He’d been substituted off in extra time after barrelling into the dugout. Kane appeared to hurt himself, but he’d been walking with something of a limp before then. Whatever the real reason, the England captain hasn’t been himself at Euro 2024.
In fact, Kane has become England’s biggest problem, which is saying something considering how much criticism has been thrown at Gareth Southgate over the course of the tournament. The Three Lions still haven’t found top form, even as they have made a run to the semi-finals, and Kane’s sluggish performances haven’t helped.
Against Switzerland, Kane mustered just two shots over 109 minutes, neither of them on target. He had just five touches in the opposition box, and 27 touches in total. For context, Jordan Pickford had nearly double the touches of the ball of Kane. When England needed their captain and top scorer most, Kane was a peripheral figure.
This wasn’t an isolated case either. Kane has struggled to get involved in matches throughout Euro 2024. Usually, he would drop deep into midfield to have an influence and spray passes forward for the likes of Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka, but the 30-year-old isn’t even doing that at the moment.
“I mean all of the games have been slightly different, I thought Harry did a super job for the team in terms of defensively, his positioning, his understanding of where he needed to be,” said Southgate when asked about Kane after making the semi-finals. “He’s perhaps not flowing as he’s arriving in those deeper areas as sometimes he looks with his passing and stuff, but he’s still playing an immense part for the group.”
No matter what Southgate says to defend his captain, though, Kane is currently off the pace. That is clear to anyone who has watched him at Euro 2024 and the improved performance against Switzerland highlighted this further. As others around Kane played with increased intensity and urgency, Kane remained at the same slow pace.
There was one moment in the first half which highlighted the issue with Kane right now. This particular sequence saw Saka beat his man to get to the byline only for Kane to stay static inside the penalty box when the England winger looked up for a cross. It’s difficult to believe a fully fit and match sharp Kane wouldn’t have offered a better option when so close to goal.
Despite Kane’s lack of movement and general involvement, there’s no realistic prospect of the 30-year-old being dropped for Wednesday’s semi-final against the Netherlands. Southgate clearly believes on an established hierarchy within his squad and Kane, as the player who wears the captain’s armband, is right at the top of the pecking order.
At his best, there is no better centre forward in football than Kane. The 30-year-old’s numbers speak for themselves – 44 goals in all competitions for Bayern Munich this season – but his all-round game is what separates him from the rest. Kane is much more than just a striker – he’s a one-man attacking hub.
At Euro 2024, however, Kane has been a shadow of his usual self. There’s still time for him to have a big impact on England’s tournament with a semi-final against the Netherlands to come and potentially a final against Spain or France after that, but nothing Kane has produced at the tournament so far suggests that’s likely. Southgate won’t drop Kane, but England’s Euro 2024’s chances might improve if he did.
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