England: Harry Kane dealt a new challenge - just as Thomas Tuchel prepares for World Cup bid

Harry Kane has efficaciously built a vocation and a planetary marque connected scoring goals and feeding connected doubts.

For Kane, your scepticism is fuel, pushing him to germinate his game, seamlessly retrieve from setbacks and beryllium amended each day.

So it is harmless to presume that Kane volition dainty Lee Carsley’s singular determination to driblet him to the seat for England’s 3-0 triumph implicit Greece connected Thursday arsenic conscionable different situation to overcome, a caller and influential doubter to beryllium wrong.

Ollie Watkins, who replaced Kane successful the XI, went a agelong mode to vindicating Carsley’s brave call, opening the scoring aft 7 minutes arsenic a youthful England took power of their Nations League radical and offered a glimpse of a aboriginal without their skipper and record-goalscorer.

The effect and show – against a Greek broadside who had antecedently not conceded astatine location successful a twelvemonth – helped to reconstruct Carsley’s estimation aft the catastrophe successful the reverse fixture astatine Wembley and, barring an unexpected hiccup astatine location to Ireland connected Sunday, ensured helium volition pb England backmost to the top-tier of the Nations League earlier handing implicit to Thomas Tuchel.

The lucifer besides raised the now-unavoidable question of whether Kane’s untouchable presumption for England has travel to an end.

There were signs during the European Championship of Kane's caller mortality, with Gareth Southgate consenting to substitute him successful large matches, but Southgate avoided confronting his captain's presumption head-on by starting him successful each crippled successful Germany, adjacent erstwhile the grounds suggested Watkins would beryllium a much dynamic enactment to pb the line.

In 1 respect, Carsley’s scepticism should not overly interest Kane – helium volition beryllium gone successful a fewer days – but Tuchel volition look the aforesaid question.

The German has a past with Kane, who scored 44 goals successful 45 appearances nether him astatine Bayern Munich past play and, fixed their occurrence together, Tuchel whitethorn determine to physique astir the 31-year-old for England’s 2026 World Cup campaign.

There remains compelling grounds that this would beryllium a logical approach; goalscorers of Kane’s prime and consistency are similar hen’s teeth successful planetary shot and it is not hard to deliberation of caller occasions erstwhile Kane has bailed retired a struggling England, including successful the 1-1 gully successful North Macedonia a twelvemonth ago, erstwhile Watkins failed to marque an content earlier Kane emerged from the seat to unit the equaliser.

It is, though, an unavoidable world that if Tuchel wants to physique a modern, high-pressing England team, based connected the principles which are astir palmy astatine nine level, Kane volition beryllium a little effectual spearhead than Watkins oregon Dominic Solanke.

For each his superb hold-up play and finishing, it was striking however lumbering Kane appeared astatine the Euros and for the last half-an-hour successful Athens aft helium replaced Watkins.

It has agelong been assumed that Kane would driblet to No10 erstwhile helium nary longer had the legs to beryllium a centre-forward but, astatine planetary level, that enactment has been chopped disconnected by the emergence of Jude Bellingham, who impressed successful Athens, Cole Palmer and Phil Foden.

Tuchel could instrumentality a mediate crushed by continuing to prime Kane successful squads but choosing his centre-forward based connected the juncture and opponent. But past determination is simply a question of whether Kane would beryllium a bully squad player?

He is simply a exemplary nonrecreational but has ne'er been thing but the archetypal sanction connected the team-sheet for nine and state since establishing himself successful the Tottenham squad a decennary ago. Would Kane, who has ne'er hidden his determination to play each infinitesimal of each game, beryllium a superb sub oregon an egotistical distraction?

There are imaginable parallels with Portugal, who efficaciously sacrificed the accidental to beryllium a functional squad astatine the Euros successful work of 39-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo's ego.

Not starting Kane successful each competitory lucifer would besides rise the delicate contented of the captaincy and whether it should walk to, say, Declan Rice oregon Bellingham.

Kane’s comments were diagnostic but were possibly a motion that helium is simply a small removed from the caller generation.

Almost each of his peers from the 2018 World Cup – Harry Maguire, Kieran Trippier, Jordan Henderson, Raheem Sterling and Co – person been phased retired of the England acceptable up, portion 34-year-old Kyle Walker’s presumption remains successful uncertainty fixed the contention astatine right-back.

England’s younger players person tremendous respect for Kane, who remains the astir influential dependable successful the dressing country and an inspiring beingness for caller players successful the squad, but his remarks constituent to the instrumentality of cracks successful the group.

Kane is expected to commencement connected Sunday, and a beardown show successful Carsley’s last crippled successful complaint could displacement the communicative backmost successful his favour.

Kane has ever been capable to person the past connection successful the past and lone a fool would stake large against him doing truthful again.

Maintaining his presumption for England during Tuchel's caller era, though, feels similar his biggest situation yet.