England star forward and captain Harry Kane was a shadow of himself during the European Football Championship. After bagging goals for Bayern Munich all season, the performances were not great during the championship.
Kane has been a regular in the starting line-up for England for several years, but despite goals against both Denmark and Slovakia, some English media on Wednesday debated whether he would start the semi-final.
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The reason is that some football experts believe that the star forward is struggling with an injury that is unknown to the media. Before the game against the Netherlands, there was speculation as to whether this was the reason why Kane was not as sharp as usual.
– Harry Kane has a huge influence on the team. It won’t surprise me if it turns out in a few weeks that he played with an injury. You can’t leave him out, he’ll give the opposition a boost if you do, Manchester United legend Gary Neville told Sky Sports.
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Regardless of whether Kane is injured or not, Gareth Southgate has opted to start the star striker in the semi-final against the Netherlands. It was probably a good choice, as after a dream goal from Dutchman Xavi Simons, Kane equalized from the penalty spot – after taking the penalty himself.
Despite Kane’s equalizer in the semi-final, British football insiders were convinced before the match that Kane was struggling with injury.
– You have to wonder if Harry Kane carries something when you see how he plays? He doesn’t seem as sharp in his movements. You will see that drive and energy to get into the box. It doesn’t quite happen, said former football star Ian Wright.
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– He obviously has some kind of injury, he is not sharp. But it won’t be surprising if he scores. That’s the problem for Southgate – he’s hard to leave out, United legend Roy Keane said.
After 80 minutes in the semi-final, Harry Kane replaced England. He was replaced by Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins.
– Removing Kane is a tough exchange for Southgate, but I think it’s the right exchange, said TV 2 football expert Brede Hangeland.
The final between England and Spain will be played on Sunday at 21:00 and will be shown on NRK.