England can do it!

cApTAIN Harry Kane insists England can win the World cup. Doubtless, many greeted this forecast with a wry smile, but I believe there’s reason for cautious optimism, not because England has an outstanding side, but because of the paucity of quality in international football.

There is no Holland or Italy to contend with and I can’t see any of the unexceptional African or South American teams doing well in such a northerly climate as Russia.

The only other serious contenders, France, Germany and Spain, are not in the same league as these countries’ great sides of the past.

That’s why I think England can go all the way and lift this coveted trophy for the first time since 1966.

PETER HENRICK, Birmingham.