Football
Mark Ogden, Senior Writer, ESPN FC 7y

Harry Kane: I'm good to go for England against Malta now August is over

BURTON-UPON-TRENT, England -- Harry Kane has said he will be "good to go" for England's World Cup qualifier against Malta on Friday, because the game is being played in September rather than August.

Tottenham Hotspur forward Kane goes into the Group F clash in Valletta having again failed to score a competitive goal in August.

He has yet to register for either Spurs or England in the month during his career, although his unusual drought almost ended with strikes against the woodwork against Newcastle and Burnley in the opening weeks of the Premier League season.

But Kane said: "The Malta game is on Sept. 1, so we've all had a little joke about it. I should be good to go now.

"I still haven't scored in August, so there is room for improvement for me, but I feel like I am in a good place physically at the moment.

"The run is what it is. Obviously, for some reason the ball doesn't seem to go in in August. Who knows why?

"I won't be too worried about that. I've had two very good seasons without scoring in August before, so I just need to keep my head down and work hard because I know the goals will come."

The 24-year-old added that he was "getting in the right positions" and "feeling good and sharp, saying: "I'm going to have spells like this, but it just seems to be at this time of the year, no matter what shape I am in.

"I just have to stay mentally focused and do my job and that, now, is to try to score for England in these next two games and go from there."

Kane's form for Tottenham over the past three seasons has seen him break the 20-goal barrier in the Premier League each year, and Chelsea manager Antonio Conte claimed the striker was worth £100 million.

But with Paris Saint-Germain triggering Neymar's £198m release clause to sign him from Barcelona, Kane -- who said he does not have a buyout clause -- believes fees have already started to escalate on the back of the move.

"It's been crazy, even from a player's point of view," he added. "With the Neymar situation, the money involved has just changed and players are going for a lot more than they may have done before that transfer.

"It is what it is, but I have spoken about it before that it would be better for the window to close before the season to help teams settle and also on an international basis.

"There are players here and rumours are going around, but that's the way the game is going.

"Do I have a buy-out clause? No, I haven't and I haven't really thought about it. I'm fully committed to Spurs, so there is no reason to have one to be honest."

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