Harry Kane’s goal was opened up at just the right time and England now set their sights on France

A Harry Kane The Rival Arc has been unlocked. At just the right moment, when the one-on-one started, England found the goal code and Gareth Southgate’s side added one more argument to dream big.

Kane converted the second of three goals in England’s 3-0 victory over Senegal, allowing the British side to advance to the quarter-finals, where they will face France, in something of an early final.

Kane’s goal was desired. England had scored nine goals in the group stage, but he had scored none. And while it may be a cause for concern for a centre-forward, it wasn’t so much for the Tottenham footballer.

It’s that Kane, even without converting, he is vital to his team’s play. Not only does he have an attacking presence, but he also provides passing, pinning, shooting back to associate with his teammates and leaves the space in the center of the box clear for surprise arriving midfielders to define.

This is demonstrated by the actions of the match against Senegal. For example, in the first and third goals, Kane returned to play and his space was exploited by the midfielders. In the opening goal, Kane pulled away, handed a through ball to Jude Bellingham and the Borussia Dortmund player struck in the cross for Jordan Henderson to finish, in the place Kane usually occupies.

And in the third goal, despite the play gets dirty along the way, Kane also participates by going down, flanking Foden and assisting him so that the Manchester City player overflows on the left and sends to the center to be pushed by Bukayo Saka, who has come to occupy the position where Kane should be.

These situations also partially explain the scoring drought Kane had had. This is mainly because his role on the pitch is far from that of a traditional area 9. Instead, he is committed to setting up play, retreating to make contact with the ball and even enjoying assisting his teammates.

In fact, the stats left over from the group stage speak for themselves: in the 223 minutes he was on the pitch in his first three games, Kane recorded just five touches of the ball in the opposing box and only finished on goal four times. . On the other hand, he provided three assists in as many games and became the first England player to assist three times in a single World Cup since David Beckham in 2002.

“He is an incredible scorer. His effectiveness in front of goal is the most evident part of his virtues, but his way of linking the game… He’s a 9 that can be distinguished from a 10. He doesn’t decide only in the box. Harry gives the others chances. He’s not selfish, but when he gets the chance he’s ruthless. He is good as both a passer and a finisher,” described the England team’s technical director, Gareth Southgate.

In short, Kane is the ideologue of English goals, even if he doesn’t convert them. He combines technique with intelligence. And much more: he is the captain and leader of a team trying to lift the world cup after 56 years.

Four years ago, with Kane top scorer at the World Cup in Russia (he scored 6 goals), England came close to playing in the final but were left out, losing to Croatia after extra time in the semi-final.

The final that was not able to play with France at the 2018 World Cup, will now have it in advance, in the quarter-finals. And here is Kane for his revenge. As the spearhead of an England that now has one more weapon: the goal.

Al Khor, Qatar. Special delivery.