Kane admits 'I'd swap everything' for Euro 2024 glory

By Sports Desk July 13, 2024

Harry Kane admits he would "swap everything I've done in my career" to win Euro 2024 with England, who face Spain in Sunday's final.

The Three Lions, who were runners-up to Italy in the delayed Euro 2020, are appearing in their second successive European Championship show-piece, and aiming to go the extra step by claiming their first major tournament silverware since lifting the 1966 World Cup.

Kane has already made history at this tournament, becoming the record goalscorer in the knockout stages of both the European Championship (six) and major tournaments overall among European players (nine).

England and Tottenham's all-time leading scorer, the Bayern Munich striker is still seeking the first team trophy of his impressive career, and he is desperate to end that wait in Berlin.

"It's no secret that I haven't won a team trophy," he told reporters during the pre-match press conference. "Every year that goes by, you are more determined and motivated to change that.

"I have the opportunity to win one of the biggest [trophies] you can ever win and make history with my nation.

"I am extremely proud to be English so, no question, I'd swap everything I've done in my career to have a special night and a win tomorrow evening, but that's not the case.

"[There will be] a lot of hard work from now and until that moment. I'm ready to go and to make tomorrow night a special one."

It will certainly not be easy for England against the most impressive team of the tournament in Spain, who have won all six of their matches while scoring 13 goals for the loss of just four.

La Roja have put host nation Germany and France to the sword along the way, and are widely regarded as the favourites to lift the Henri Delaunay cup at the Olympiastadion.

Asked if he thought that was the case, Kane added: "That's not for me or the players to decide. That's for the media, the fans to think of favourites.

"But Spain have had a fantastic tournament. They have probably been the best team, consistency-wise throughout the tournament, so they probably earn that right, but as we know in football, in one game, anything can happen.

"We back ourselves against anyone we play against. We've been through difficult spells in this tournament, but we've come through the other side. That builds a tremendous amount of belief and resilience, which is everything you need in a final.

"We expect a tough game. We're in a European final, so we expect nothing less, and Spain will be difficult tomorrow night."

Related items

  • 'It was typical Kane', says Kompany after Bayern star smashes Bundesliga record 'It was typical Kane', says Kompany after Bayern star smashes Bundesliga record

    Vincent Kompany quipped it was "typical Harry Kane" after the England captain netted his 50th Bundesliga goal in Bayern Munich's 3-0 win over Augsburg.

    Kane scored all of Bayern's goals in Friday's victory, as Kompany's side went, at least temporarily, eight points clear at the top of the Bundesliga.

    In the process, Kane netted his 50th goal in the competition, reaching the milestone in just 43 appearances, smashing the previous record of 50 set by Erling Haaland during his time at Borussia Dortmund.

    Two of Kane's goals came from the penalty spot, before he rounded off his hat-trick in the 95th minute with a deft header after he had exquisitely controlled Leon Goretzka's lobbed pass.

    "It was typical Harry Kane," Kompany said. "He had situations in the first half where he could maybe have done better.

    "But a player like him can score at any moment, he went on to score three."

    Joshua Kimmich hailed Kane's composure from the penalty spot.

    "I've never seen him miss one," Kimmich said.

    "In general we have complete faith in him and he repays that faith. To take and score a penalty like that is a real quality. It's always regarded as easy from the outside but it's quite extraordinary."

    Ten of Kane's 50 Bundesliga goals have come from penalties, while 32 of them have been with his right foot, nine with his left and nine with his head.

    Kane is also the quickest Bayern player to hit 50 league goals for the club, surpassing Robert Lewandowski's previous record of 64 games by a staggering 21 matches.

    The 31-year-old has netted every 75 minutes on average.

    "We said at half-time we should just keep going and create chances," Kane told reporters.

    "Thankfully we got the penalty and from there the game opened up.

    "We have a big week ahead with PSG in the Champions League, then Dortmund, then [Bayer] Leverkusen in the cup.

    "We're in a good moment, we're feeling good and should just keep the momentum up."

    Bayern's dominance was reflected in the match stats, with Kompany's team having 33 shots to Augsburg's two, getting 14 of them on target, and accumulating 3.77 expected goals (xG) while giving up just 0.1 at the other end.

    But Kompany says there is much more to come.

    "It's normal for it not to be easy – after all it's a Bundesliga game," he said.

    "We had 33 attempts at goal and very often found ourselves inside their box. But we remained patient and continued to show that we wanted to score goals.

    "When you're in the penalty area as often as we were, it's normal that there will be a penalty given at some point.

    "I'm never satisfied because I want us to always be improving. I know how important the win was tonight, and I can really appreciate it."

  • Captain fantastic Dyllan John delivers as 10-man JC secure gritty Champions Cup quarterfinal win over McGrath Captain fantastic Dyllan John delivers as 10-man JC secure gritty Champions Cup quarterfinal win over McGrath

    Jamaica College (JC) displayed resilience and determination to book their spot in the ISSA Champions Cup semifinals, as they overcame early adversity to secure a 2-0 victory over McGrath High in a lukewarm quarterfinal encounter at the Montego Bay Sports Complex on Friday.

    Captain Dyllan John again proved heroic, scoring both goals for his team in the 60th and 90+2 to keep their triple crown ambitions alive, as they also have the Manning Cup semi-final to contest on Wednesday.

    Head coach Davion Ferguson praised his players fighting spirit in achieving their semi-final objective.

    “I think the referee made a very questionable call, but the boys didn’t drop their heads. At halftime we told them that this is what we have been working on, and they dug deep, pressed McGrath a little higher, and I think that’s what paid off for us at the end. So even though it was 11 versus 10, we were still even in the sense of our quality superiority, and we made it count in the second half,” Ferguson said in a post-game interview.

    His counterpart Jermaine Thomas also lauded his McGrath outfit despite their inability to capitalize on the numerical advantage.

    “I thought we played well; we just never scored. I thought we created several goal-scoring opportunities...easy ones, and we stopped them from playing through the channels and breaking the lines easy. So they were playing long balls for the entire game; it is just that we never scored the chances that we got,” Thomas said.

    The match began under dramatic circumstances as Jamaica College suffered a major setback in the 16th minute. Goalkeeper Taywane Lynch was shown a red card for what referee Christopher Mason deemed a handball, although replays and protests from Jamaica College suggested the ball had come off his chest while he was still inside his 18-yard box.

    Despite the controversy, Jamaica College were forced to play the remainder of the match with 10 men and relied on substitute goalkeeper Adriano Kitson to step into the breach.

    The numerical disadvantage did not deter the Old Hope Road boys, who reorganized defensively to keep McGrath at bay.

    Both teams created half-chances in the first half, but poor finishing, particularly from McGrath, and solid defending in parts by Jamaica College ensured the game remained goalless at the break.

    McGrath, sensing an opportunity to upset the favorites, started the second half brightly and should have broken the deadlock in the 53rd minute. However, Mason failed to pull the trigger from a promising position, and the chance went abegging.

    Four minutes later, Nashordo Gibbs tested Orlando Griffiths with a sharp effort at the near post, but the McGrath custodian was up to the task.

    John then took matters into his own hands and fired the “Dark Blues” in front at the hour mark. The talented player sporting the number seven jersey picked up possession in the attacking third, shook two defenders, and unleashed a precise right-footed strike into the far corner.

    Buoyed by the goal, Jamaica College grew in confidence, even with a man down, but McGrath continued to press, and Jimm Mitchell had his 78th-minute effort deflected by Kitson.

    While McGrath threw everything forward in search of an equalizer, it left them vulnerable at the back, and Jamaica College capitalized as a well-timed through ball from Dontae Logan sent John racing clear, and the captain showed his class once more, slotting a composed finish past Griffiths to seal the victory.

  • Reid’s double sends Ocho Rios High into ISSA Champions Cup semifinals Reid’s double sends Ocho Rios High into ISSA Champions Cup semifinals

    Keanu Reid’s clinical brace fired Ocho Rios High into the ISSA Champions Cup semifinals as they secured a 2-0 victory over debutants St Catherine High in a keenly contested quarterfinal clash at the Montego Bay Sports Complex on Friday.

    Reid’s strikes (42nd and 56th) were the highlights of the win achieved through a disciplined defensive display and lethal counterattacks that ensured Ocho Rios’s first-ever semifinal appearance in the all-island knockout competition, as they left St Catherine High frustrated despite their dominance in possession.

    While pleased with his team’s win, Ocho Rios Head coach Veron Peterkin felt the overall performance could have been better, as he acknowledged that they were aided by St Catherine’s profligacy.

    “To be fair, St Catherine missed a couple of chances behind our backline, but we were fortunate that we took ours, and we missed some as well, but we have to give credit to them. Reid is a very good player; he should have scored a bit more, but at least he scored two that gave us the win. So we just have to keep him happy and healthy as we move forward,” Peterkin said in a post-game interview.

    St Catherine entered the game as slight favourites and started with intent, dominating the early exchanges. Dwight Gentles nearly gave them the lead in the opening minutes, forcing Ocho Rios goalkeeper Maleek Martin into a reflex save.

    Moments later, Ronaldo Stewart’s driving run sliced through the Ocho Rios defence, but his final effort rolled agonisingly wide of the upright.

    Despite numerous forays into the attacking third, St Catherine’s final product lacked precision, with Tevin Grey and Kadean Young both seeing goal-bound efforts thwarted by a resolute Ocho Rios defence and the ever-alert Martin.

    While St Catherine struggled to capitalize on their opportunities, Ocho Rios executed their game plan to perfection. Sitting deep and absorbing pressure, they waited patiently for their chance to counter.

    Their breakthrough eventually came in the 42nd minute, when Kaneil Brown slipped a perfectly weighted pass through to Reid, who dismissed the advancing Omarion Brown in goal for St Catherine and slotted in his 23rd goal of the season to give Ocho Rios a 1-0 lead at the break.

    St Catherine came out determined in the second half and pushed hard for an equaliser which they should have had nine minutes in. This, as Lavaughn Taylor delivered a dangerous cross to Gentles, whose effort sailed over the bar.

    Minutes later, Grey’s deft ball into the area found Gentles again, whose header was calmly held by Martin.

    Young came closest to leveling the score when his curling effort beat Martin but ricocheted off the upright, summing up St Catherine’s frustrations.

    Just as St Catherine began to pile on the pressure, Ocho Rios struck again. Reid broke free on another counterattack and outpaced a scrambling defence before slotting past a stranded Brown, who had ventured well outside his penalty area.

    The goal all but sealed St Catherine’s fate, and while they continued to press forward, their attempts became increasingly desperate. Young rattled the crossbar in added time in what was another cruel reminder of their missed chances throughout the match.

    Ocho Rios nearly added to their tally as Brown unleashed a stinging shot from just inside the 18-yard box that was equally well-saved by Omarion Brown, who took flight to his left.

    Rajaun Garrick went on another counter for Ocho Rios, but again Brown advanced well to deny them in time added.

    For St Catherine’s assistant coach, Donovan Lofters, the loss was a bitter pill to swallow, as he rued his team’s wastefulness in front of goal.

    “We should have led by three or four goals by halftime, but we kept missing easy chances. So if you don’t eat your dinner, someone will eat it for you, and kudos to Ocho Rios; they did eat it. We didn’t deliver today,” Lofters said.

© 2024 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.