World Cup 2026: Is this Harry Kane’s time for England and for Ballon d’Or?
The final task of the finest season of Harry Kane’s magnificent career is to tie up loose ends as England’s World Cup captain.
Kane, England’s ‘Mr Irreplaceable’; Thomas Tuchel’s side were horribly toothless in the draw with Uruguay and the friendly defeat to Japan at Wembley in March, as evidenced by this.
The fitness of the 32-year-old football player, who is preparing to start their World Cup campaign against Croatia in Dallas on June 17, will be Tuchel’s biggest concern. This is not only because he is England’s all-time top scorer with 78 goals in 112 appearances, but also because there is no one remotely in Kane’s class.
England’s hopes will be boosted if Kane stays fit and maintains the outstanding form that has seen him score 64 goals in 56 games for Bayern Munich this season.
If not, the opposite is true.
As former England striker Chris Sutton told BBC Sport: “Harry Kane is so important that if he announced his international retirement this afternoon everyone would instantly see England’s World Cup chances in a different, more pessimistic light.”
The silverware came late in Kane’s career after barren years at Tottenham Hotspur where even a stunning goal haul could not bring victory.
He is now trying to make up for lost time by winning a second consecutive Bundesliga with Bayern Munich and scoring a hat-trick in a 3-0 win over Stuttgart in the German Cup final.
And Kane now has his sights set on delivering the ultimate prize as he leads England in their latest quest to end the men’s quest for success that dates back to their 1966 World Cup victory.
The countdown to England’s World Cup opener continues with a friendly against New Zealand at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on Saturday (21:00 BST).
Kane suffered the disappointment of losing back-to-back European Championship finals with England to Italy and Spain, as well as losing to Croatia in the 2018 World Cup semi-final and France in the quarter-final in Qatar.
Now Kane’s superb form and conditioning means it is time for England and their talisman to overcome the barrier that has brought 60 years of pain.
