Harry Kane hits again at Gary Lineker over brutal X-rated England Euro 2024 rant
Harry Kane has blasted back at Gary Lineker – and told him to stop being a hypocrite when it comes to criticising England.
Presenter Lineker labelled England’s 1-1 draw with Denmark as “sh**” in a brutal rant – and also questioned the tactical nous of boss Gareth Southgate. But Three Lions captain Kane believes Lineker should remember how difficult major tournaments can be – because he won nothing as an England player.
Kane said: “I’d never want to be disrespectful to any player, especially, you know, a player who’s worn the shirt and knows what it’s like to play for England. Maybe ex-players or ex-players who are pundits now have got to realise… it’s very hard not to listen to [what they say] now, especially for some players who are not used to it or some players who are new to the environment.
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“So I always feel like [former players and pundits] have a responsibility. I know they’ve got to be honest and give their opinion, but also they have a responsibility of being an ex-England player.
“The bottom line is, we haven’t won anything as a nation for a long, long time. And, you know, a lot of these ex-players were part of that as well… they do know that it’s tough to play in these major tournaments. It’s tough to play for England.”
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Kane is England’s all-time highest goalscorer with 64 goals in 94 appearances. The Three Lions’ return of four points from two group games is identical to Euro 2020, when they beat Croatia 1-0 and drew 0-0 with Scotland. Their third group game in that tournament was another 1-0 win, and they conceded just two goals all tournament before suffering a penalty shoot-out defeat in the final.
Lineker isn’t the only former player to comment on the first two games, with Gary Neville suggesting Southgate could make a couple of tweaks for Tuesday’s Slovenia clash. Speaking on ITV, Neville suggested Manchester United youngster Kobbie Mainoo could come into midfield, with Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon potentially getting his first minutes of the tournament in attack.
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“He [Southgate] talked about a partner for Rice and maybe some pace upfront alongside Kane,” Neville said. “That’s Gordon and that’s Mainoo. Declan Rice must have a partner in midfield who can play and get us playing out from the back.
“I think that pace question is there, we’ve been talking about it for a few days. I think he could even be disruptive enough to do what he did in previous tournaments and go to a three at the back as well. It’s that left wing-back role that’s a bit difficult for Gareth.”
