Former England striker Alan Shearer was critical of Harry Kane over his performance against Italy in the finals of the UEFA Euro 2020 on Sunday.
Speaking to BBC, as quoted by the Mirror, former Newcastle United and England striker Alan Shearer has criticised Harry Kane for not getting the balance right in his game in the UEFA Euro 2020 final against Italy.
After having reached a major tournament final after a long 55-year wait, England failed to get over the line as Italy triumphed on penalty shootouts after the contest ended 1-1 after 120 minutes of action.
England had made the perfect start to the game, with Luke Shaw scoring the opener with a thumping half-volley. Kane had played a part in the goal, as he dropped deep to get on the ball and send Kieran Trippier through, who picked out the goalscorer with a peach of a cross.
While Kane’s tendency to drop deep served England well in the opening exchanges, the Three Lions’ skipper’s influence faded over time as he struggled to make things happen. For a large part of the second period it almost felt like the 27-year-old was caught in no man’s land as he was unsure of dropping deep or occupying the Italian defenders, which meant England were devoid of a focal point.
"It hurts now. It's going to hurt for a long time. But the boys should be proud."
Well said, @HKane.
? @UEFA pic.twitter.com/iWSN0SAHb2
— England (@England) July 11, 2021
And, Shearer, speaking after the game, said that the England captain did not get the balance of things right, which meant he ended up without a single touch in the opposition penalty box.
“Harry Kane, There’s a balance when you’re playing as a forward. In the first half he was causing them problems because he was dropping deep, but he didn’t have one touch in the 18-yard box for the whole game. It’s been a really tough night for him,” the all-time highest goalscorer of the Premier League said.
Kane has excelled while dropping deep to almost operate as a pseudo-playmaker this past season with Tottenham. However, with Italy totally in control of proceedings after the first half-hour or so, the England captain was unable to make the kind of impact that he is capable of. He ended the tournament with four goals to his name.
The focus now will be on his future at Tottenham, as he continues to attract serious interest from the trio of Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City. The former two have made an approach to his agents, while the latter have already had an offer rejected for him as well. In fact, recent reports have even claimed that Manchester United have emerged as front-runners to sign the England captain.
