PM RISHI Sunak heaps praise on England record goalscorer Harry Kane – hailing him as an “all time great”.
The star forward, 29, received the congratulatory video call from the PM yesterday – two days after bagging his 54th international goal against Italy.
Simon Walker / No10 Downing StreetRishi Sunak hailed England record goalscorer Harry Kane as an ‘all time great’[/caption]
ReutersKane celebrates breaking the England goalscoring record[/caption]
The PM told Kane: “Massive congratulations – for what you have achieved personally, that you are the all time great.
“You’re a phenomenal captain, a phenomenal role model, and the entire country is very proud of you and lucky to have you.”
The Spurs man – who will be looking to extend his record against Ukraine tonight – replied: “It has not truly sunk in yet… but it was a special night.
“I love playing for my country so much, I want to represent it in the best way.”
Kane’s strike at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples meant he overtook Wayne Rooney’s eight-year record of 53 goals.
The striker blasted away the demons of England’s last two major tournament defeats and became his nation’s greatest goalscorer.
It was Kane’s infamous penalty miss which cost England their chance of dethroning champions France at the World Cup, and it was Roberto Mancini’s Italy who had denied them glory in the Euros final of 2021.
Kane might not have wanted it to be a penalty, after his ordeal in Qatar but despite a lengthy VAR check before the spot-kick was awarded for a handball by Giovanni Di Lorenzo, the Tottenham striker held his nerve.
This was a vintage performance from Kane, who weathered a physical buffering from Italy’s central defenders and led from the front – perhaps inspired by his Italian club manager Antonio Conte’s rant at “selfish” Spurs players after a late blow-up at Southampton.