Harry Kane will captain England against Scotland at Hampden Park and stake his claim to wear the armband on a permanent basis as Gareth Southgate takes advantage of a first opportunity to select the Tottenham Hotspur forward in his senior team.
The Spurs striker has not represented his country since Sam Allardyce’s sole game in charge, against Slovakia in September 2016, with injuries having denied Southgate the chance to pick him since taking up the reins. The manager has confirmed he now intends to make a permanent appointment to the role, with the former captain Wayne Rooney no longer involved, and was impressed by the leadership skills demonstrated by Kane on a team bonding exercise with the Royal Marines in Devon last weekend.
The 23-year-old does not captain his club side, but will now become Southgate’s fifth skipper in seven games as England seek to reinforce their qualifying position at the top of Group F. “Harry’s not been with us up to this point, but his mentality is excellent,” said the manager, who has previously used Jordan Henderson, Gary Cahill, Joe Hart and Rooney in the role over his tenure to date.
“He has a very good view of the game and is keen to lead. I want people with leadership qualities who are respected by the group and capable of stepping forward at the right moments and handling responsibility.
“We have different types of leaders in this group – Adam Lallana, for example, is an outstanding leader, a thoughtful player, who starts us off with his pressing on the pitch. So we have people doing that at different moments. Harry is prepared to do that. I’ve worked with him with the under-21s and I know his mentality. He wants to be one of the best in the world.”
Kane’s last international goal was scored against Turkey in a pre-Euro 2016 friendly over a year ago, with his tally of five over 17 caps a stark contrast from the 75 he has managed for Tottenham in the Premier League over the last three seasons. “His goals’ record over the last three seasons speaks for itself,” said Southgate. “When we worked at the under-21s, the quality of his finishing was already very clear... I’ve seen the level of finishing first-hand of the likes of (Robbie) Fowler, (Paul) Scholes, Alan Shearer and, in Harry, you could see that same level of finishing from the first day. Then it was about transferring that into matches because he wasn’t playing for Spurs at the time. But he’s done that since.
“He’s always had the focus to be the best possible player. They’re the attributes you need when you look at the top players. That’s what I like about this squad: we have players who have the mentality to want to be top players, players who want to improve. I played with Shearer when he went through that long goal drought before Euro 96, and he ended up top scorer in the championships. Goals will come for Harry. It’s a good moment for him, the way he finished the season.” The striker managed seven in Spurs’ last two games of the campaign.
Southgate is considering playing a back three against the Scots, with Chris Smalling most likely joining John Stones and Gary Cahill in the back-line, and Kyle Walker and Ryan Bertrand selected in wing-back roles. The national manager confirmed that, having previously distanced himself from the cult of the captaincy, he does now intend to make a permanent appointment in the role. “I think you have to,” he said. “You have to decide: ‘Okay, this is what we’re going to do.’ But it was important, and is at the moment, to develop a group first. Everyone says we don’t have leaders. That’s not my view of this group of players, but they have to step forward at different moments and show it. We’re developing a healthy culture.”
The national manager has offered a reminder to England’s travelling supporters over their behaviour at Hampden Park, with both teams to observe a pre-match minute’s silence to remember the victims of the recent terrorist atrocities in Manchester and London. “In terms of numbers we will have fantastic support tomorrow,” added Southgate. “We want that support, but in the right way. We want them behind us in the appropriate way. In the same way the team are ambassadors for the country, so are the supporters.