Harry Kane is confident he will win silverware with Bayern Munich this season before trying to lead England to Euro 2024 glory in Germany.
The 30-year-old is blazing a trail in the Bundesliga following his summer move from Tottenham, scoring 28 goals in 27 games as Bayern are locked in a title race with Bayer Leverkusen and also in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
He hopes his goals continue Bayern’s domination of German football before aiming for more glory in his new homeland with England in the European Championship.
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“I’m feeling confident,” he told the PA news agency. “Bayern Munich have been winning their league for the last 11 years or so and also won the Champions League a few years ago, there’s an expectation to be winning every trophy that we’re in.
“The focus is to win both tournaments.”
Asked whether the summer tournament was England’s best chance of ending their trophy drought, he said: “I would probably say ‘yes’, if you look how close we got in the last Euros and getting knocked out in the quarter-final to a great team in France.
“I am just looking at it from a point of view where our experiences as a team, our different ages in terms of having good younger players, good experienced players, young exciting players.
“When you look around the European nations now, we will be looked at as one of the favourites.
“There won’t be too many teams wanting to play us but games in tournaments are hard to win, they’re not easy, that’s why we haven’t won one in 60 years.
“We have to go there and try and achieve it. A great opportunity for us. We’re in a great moment as a team, but as always, we have to go there and make it happen so it is an exciting challenge to do that but a tough one as well.”
As he enters the second phase of his career, Kane has already shown his sustainability in the game, but is also tackling the matter off the pitch.
He has invested in golf sportswear brand Reflo, whose mission is to become the most sustainable apparel brand in the world by using materials derived from single-use plastic waste.
Kane, who will wear the Reflo brand when playing pro-am and exhibition competitions, has tackled social issues such as children’s mental health through his Harry Kane Foundation and now wants to learn more about sustainability.
“It’s more me as a father looking into the future and looking at my kids and thinking, ‘What can I do to help their future’,” he said.
“Sustainability is something that I know not too much about, I am still learning and getting to know more about it but when I am looking to partner or invest in brands, I want to see what they are doing for the future as well.
“Reflo are definitely hitting that market and trying to help a lot of other people understand about being sustainable and the impact that can have on the world itself. I am hoping to learn more as the relationship grows.”
Reflo have pledged to plant 500 trees for every goal that Kane scores in the 2023/24 season so they are going to be busy, with the England captain hitting the ground running in Germany.
Kane became a record breaker twice in the space of two months last season as he broke Jimmy Greaves’ all-time scoring for Tottenham and then became England’s greatest ever scorer the following month.
He has another achievement in his sights with Bayern as he chases down Robert Lewandowski’s seasonal record of 41 goals in the Bundesliga.
Kane, with 24 goals in 20 games so far, admitted he did not expect to be as prolific as he has been but was not focusing on eclipsing Lewandowski’s tally just yet.
“I didn’t know what to expect. I always believed in myself and I had scored goals every year in the Premier League and that’s what I wanted to go and do in the Bundesliga,” he added.
“I probably didn’t picture scoring as many goals as I have now at this stage of the season. But you know me, I don’t like to put a limit on anything.
“I don’t like to think about records in particular, they are a consequence of hard work and doing all the little stuff off the pitch that put you to where you are on it.
“My focus is on the short term and then as we get closer and we get towards the end of the season and I am in touching distance, then for sure it will be something I would love to achieve.”
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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