Harry Kane responds to Thomas Tuchel's criticism: England is not yet at its peak form
England captain Harry Kane has backed the sharp criticism from head coach Thomas Tuchel following the World Cup quarter-final victory over Norway. Although the "Three Lions" secured a spot in the semi-finals, the German manager openly expressed his dissatisfaction with the team's performance in Miami, reports Goal.com.
Despite a 2-1 win thanks to a brace from Jude Bellingham, Tuchel called the team "lucky" and highlighted a lack of technical composure and pace. According to Goal.com, Harry Kane explained the coach's approach as a desire to translate the team's training ground quality into matches.
Harry Kane noted that he understands the coach's high standards. He believes Tuchel sees the players' high level in training and demands the same quality in official matches. "He knows how we attack and our quality in one-on-one duels, and he wants us to show that version of ourselves," the Bayern Munich striker emphasized.
High standards ahead of the semi-final
England has reached the semi-finals of a major tournament for the fourth time in their history. However, both within the team and among experts, there is a consensus that England has yet to produce a performance where they maintained full control for 90 minutes. Kane admitted that the team has only shown its true strength in brief episodes during the tournament in North America."We haven't reached our best level yet. We only showed ourselves in short moments against Norway. The complete control we want isn't there yet, but we are playing against one of the best teams in the world (Argentina) in the semi-final, and that will require an even higher level from us," the captain said.
Interestingly, the coach's criticism did not sit well with another team star, Jude Bellingham. The Real Madrid midfielder pointed out that the difficult weather conditions in Miami and playing against stars like Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard were not easy. Nevertheless, Kane stated that the atmosphere within the team remains stable and all focus is on the next stage.
Top scorer race situation
Currently, two leaders of the England national team are high on the tournament's top scorer list:- Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé — 8 goals each;
- Erling Haaland — 7 goals;
- Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham — 6 goals each.
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