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Captain Kane shows value on and off pitch with hat-trick following three key talks with Gomez

TWO hat-tricks, one on the pitch and one off it, are slowly marking Harry Kane out to have the potential to become England’s greatest ever captain.

The one on the pitch, everybody saw. Three goals against Montenegro that took Kane into sixth place in the all-time England goalscoring charts in near-record time.

Wayne Rooney, who is overall top of the list, took 77 matches to get to Kane’s tally of 31 goals. Michael Owen 70.

Gary Lineker, third highest goalgetter for his country and Sir Bobby Charlton, who is second, were much speedier with 49 and 46 matches respectively but only Jimmy Greaves, with 36, can surpass Kane’s tally of 44.

More impressive, though, is the unseen hat-trick that formed the backdrop of Kane’s exploits this week after the incident involving Raheem Sterling and Joe Gomez in the St George’s Park canteen on Monday night.

The three times he sat down with Gomez in private conversations to help nurture him through a week in which, as even Raheem Sterling admitted after the Liverpool defender was booed at Wembley, was none of his own making.

“I don’t know if it was the hardest week as a captain, but it was a different week to what I have been used to,” Kane said when asked after the game.

“In life, in football, as one of the leaders, stuff happens and you have to adapt and control the situation and me and the gaffer and Jordan Henderson – who was involved even though he was not there – I think we handled it as well as we could have.

“I was not in the room when it happened. So after it happened I asked Joe and a few of the players about what went on.

“I then spoke to Joe privately about how he was feeling.

‘Emotions had run high just after it happened, so I also spoke to Raz [Sterling], then me and a few of the senior players spoke about what we should do.

“Joe and Raz then got together and had a chat and then after that, I spoke to Joe again to see how he was feeling.

We had a

private meeting and I won’t discuss what we said. But he was feeling better after his chat with Raz.

“It is about understanding what went on and why, speaking to both players and trying to control it.

“So I find it really confusing why he was booed. I spoke to him in the dressing room and he seemed fine.

“We cannot control the fans or what they do but Joe has a top mentality and is fighting to play on Sunday.”

Kane is not a captain who beats his chest or shouts the odds – it is a more subtle leadership style. He does not even do every pre-match press conference, as previous England captains have, as Gareth Southgate is determined to share that responsibility around.

It may have been a week for Kane to front up, but the FA hierarchy stuck to plan A and gave Harry Maguire, confident in the fact that Kane would be more than happy to put himself forward for press duties after the match.

As it was, speaking afterwards also gave him an opportunity to talk about his second successive Wembley hat-trick.

Although the Tottenham marksman admitted he was disappointed it was not four as England ran riot with seven goals against Montenegro.

“With the players I have around me – with Raheem Sterling and Jadon Sancho, with Ben Chilwell and Trent Alexander-Arnold putting in balls; and Mason Mount and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain making forward runs and creating space – it is about getting in the right position and the balls will come.

“They did in the first half and I got my hat-trick.

“But I had one in the second half which the keeper saved just before I came off. I will probably think about that one more than anything.”