Harry Kane will captain England against Scotland in Saturday’s World Cup Qualifier, Gareth Southgate has confirmed.
The 23-year-old recently put his hand up to become England skipper in the near future, but the Tottenham Hotspur striker will wear the armband on what will be his 18th cap for the national side.
Southgate revealed Kane was “chuffed” to be selected from a number of players who could have taken on the responsibility from regular captain Wayne Rooney, who is not in the squad, and defended his side against suggestions the group lacks leaders.
“People said to me there was a lack of leaders in this team and I don’t think that’s the case,” Southagte said on Friday. “I felt it important to try and give people the opportunity to lead in different ways. Everybody’s different and has different leadership styles, has a different impact around the hotel, training ground and in meetings.
“Harry is one of a number of people I could have given that opportunity to. A couple of the others have done it already and I wanted to give him that boost for tomorrow.
“It’s a great honour for any player and their family. The significance wasn’t lost on him that’s for sure.”
While Southgate downplayed suggestions Kane – who outlined his Ballon d’Or aspirations on Thursday – was planning on scoring a hat-trick at Hampden Park this weekend, the England boss admitted goalscoring remains the player’s priority despite the added duty of being captain.
“A couple of goals would be nice,” said Southgate, when asked what he expected of Kane. “It’s a good moment for him as a player, he finished the season really well.
“He’s a player we’ve worked with for a long time, we know his mentality, we know he wants to be one of the best in the world. We’ve got a team at the moment who aren’t where they want to be individually or collectively but they’ve got great potential. We’re starting to tap into that.”
Having just finished the Premier League season with their clubs, England’s players were taken on a surprise boot camp with the Marines ahead of this weekend’s game.
While Southgate stressed the importance of leadership, communication and mentality skills gained from the exercise, the England boss also spoke of the lasting emotional impact he hopes it will have beyond the game.
“There’s times where you want people to have a great life experience, something that will stay with them forever, that’s beyond just building towards a game or building towards a World Cup,” he said.
“Life is about memories and I think that weekend will stay with everybody forever.”
