England captain Harry Kane says he is enjoying the finest form of his career after scoring the decisive goal in his side’s World Cup warm-up victory over New Zealand.
Kane’s well-taken header in first-half stoppage time secured a narrow win for England in Tampa, where high temperatures and difficult playing conditions slowed the tempo of the match.
The goal added another milestone to Kane’s international career, making New Zealand the 35th different nation he has scored against for England. That puts him seven clear of former England captain Wayne Rooney, who found the net against 28 different opponents.
The striker also became only the fourth England player to score 10 or more goals against non-European teams, joining Gary Lineker, Michael Owen and Bobby Charlton.
Under manager Thomas Tuchel, Kane has scored in eight of England’s 13 matches, representing 62 percent of the games played during the German coach’s tenure.
With England set to face Costa Rica in their final friendly before opening their World Cup campaign against Croatia on June 17, Kane expressed confidence about his condition heading into the tournament.
“I think physically, mentally, it’s the best shape I have been in my career,” Kane told ITV Sport.
“We’re going into a tough environment, a tough tournament, I’m excited for it. The World Cup is the biggest tournament of all and I’m looking forward to it getting started really.”
Reflecting on the victory over New Zealand, Kane acknowledged the challenges posed by the weather and playing surface but was pleased with the team’s performance.
“Yeah a good win, it’s not easy. The heat is hard, the pitch wasn’t great to be honest really hard to play the way that we want to play.
“But this is why we are here, to adapt to it. In the end we probably could’ve scored a couple more we know we are here more for preparation than the result.”
The England skipper also downplayed concerns over the impact of extreme temperatures during the tournament.
“The drinks breaks help. A lot of people are talking about the heat but I don’t think it’s going to be as big a factor as what some people say.
“Me personally and a few of of the boys who have been training for a while in it felt fine today. We’re all athletes, we’re all professionals and have played in warm weather conditions before.”
Kane’s latest goal and confident assessment of his fitness will provide a major boost for England as they prepare for another bid to win football’s biggest prize.
