London: Captain Harry Kane says England’s bid to end their World Cup drought stretching back over half-a-century will not be undone by a divided squad.
The 24-year-old striker said there were no cliques within the squad that flies out to Russia later, Tuesday seeking to emulate their 1966 predecessors in lifting the trophy. Earlier former World Cuppers, both Rio Ferdinand and Steven Gerrard had said that club rivalries between players selected to the England squad had prevented them from winning the title.
Kane, though, told the English daily newspapers this is not the case with the present group under Gareth Southgate – as many of them have played with each other at under-21 level.
“It’s not something we’ve had to deal with really – really we all get on very well and have come through the ranks together,” said Kane. “We definitely don’t have that divide in the team anymore.”
We are not finished article… we are far from it, but we have shown enough signs of progress
Harry Kane
Kane also took issue with Ferdinand who told ‘The Times’ last month his priority had been winning trophies with Manchester United.
“I’d be surprised if the majority of players did not say the World Cup is the biggest sporting event in the world. I’d love to win everything with Tottenham, but for me personally the World Cup outweighs them all.”
Kane does not expect a repeat of the woeful Euro 2016 campaign which saw them beaten by minnows Iceland in the last 16 and cost then manager Roy Hodgson his job.
“I’m confident it won’t happen (again) – I won’t say 100 per cent because you never know in football – but in this team we wear our heart on our sleeve. “We’re proud to be here, we will work hard, be energetic. First and foremost we will run around and do that aspect of the game. We have a lot of attacking flair that can do some damage to the opposition.”
Southgate also did not wish to heighten expectations which have so often been a crushing burden for the national side.
“We hope we can send people to work the following day having enjoyed our matches, I know what those tournament experiences can be like and we desperately want to bring that,” informed Southgate whose side have warmed up with wins over fellow finalists Nigeria and Costa Rica.
