Tottenham striker Harry Kane has overtaken Wayne Rooney to become England’s all-time top goalscorer in this evening’s clash with Italy, just weeks after he became Tottenham’s all-time record goalscorer.
Kane doubled England’s advantage in the 43rd minute from the penalty spot after hometown hero Giovanni Di Lorenzo was judged to have handballed in the box when challenging Kane in the air after a Bukayo Saka corner before the Spurs star slammed home from 12-yards-out past Gianluigi Donnarumma.
HARRY KANE. England’s all-time top goal scorer 🏴#ITAENG https://t.co/cmPcgGBqQ6
— 101 Great Goals (@101greatgoals) March 23, 2023
The England captain, who made his debut in 2015, needed just 79 seconds of his England career to make his mark, scoring a header against Lithuania at Wembley.
And he has not looked back since, with the 29-year-old having drawn level with Rooney when he converted his first penalty against France in the World Cup quarter-final, though he squandered the opportunity to overtake his compatriot minutes later when he sent another penalty over the bar on the way to the Three Lions being knocked out of the competition in Qatar.
That was never going to keep him down for long, however, and Kane notched his 54th goal in England colours, like the first, at Wembley, though this time against Italy in their EURO2024 qualification opener.
His strike against the Azzurri, which came in his 81st appearance for the Three Lions, means that he scored a goal roughly every 1.5 games, far better than either Wayne Rooney (2.25) and Bobby Charlton (2) below him.
Kane, whose future is up in the air beyond this summer thanks to his Tottenham contract running out in 2024, became Tottenham’s all-time Premier League top goalscorer against Manchester City at the beginning of February.
He is still well on course to beat Alan Shearer’s Premier League goalscoring record of 260, with the Spurs man currently on 204 and with second-placed Wayne Rooney (208) in his sights before the end of the season.
