Gareth Southgate has confirmed Harry Kane will start England’s Euro 2020 clash against the Czech Republic.
The Three Lions skipper has failed to have a shot on target in the opening two Group D games and was substituted off in both the win over Croatia and Friday’s goalless draw with Scotland.
Kane won the Golden Boot at the 2018 World Cup and ended the recent Premier League season as the top goalscorer and with the most assists.
He has adapted his game in the past year and now drops deeper to get involved in the play – something that has worked at Tottenham but has seen the chances dry up at international level.
Despite that, Southgate has revealed Kane will start on Tuesday night with England needing to beat the Czech Republic if they are to advance as winners of Group D.
“You can assume that, yes, absolutely,” Southgate replied when asked if Kane would keep his place. “He is fundamental not only to the goals he scores but the build-up play and everything else he brings.
“I know there will be a lot of questions being asked about him at the moment but he has been through that 100 times before and I have answered that in this role several times in the past and he has come up with the goals that have won us the next games and I expect that to be the same moving forward.”
Southgate also went on to explain why he had taken Kane off in both matches so far this summer and hailed the 27-year-old striker as his key man.
He is our most important player, there is no doubt about that
“In one of the games we were already ahead and we needed energy to press and keep the lead, we didn’t need an additional goal,” he told ITV Sport.
“Harry, during the World Cup, we ended up with him playing a lot of football and we’ve felt the need to manage that load a little bit this time and we have got good options on the bench to bring people into the game.
“But he is our most important player, there is no doubt about that, you’ve only got to look at his goalscoring record with us to see his importance to the team.”
