Kane: I was devastated after the World Cup, but I wanted to stay strong
Harry Kane has shockingly revealed that his fiancée, Kate Goodland, has never seen him cry, but he is happy to become a blubbering wreck if England can win a trophy.
The England captain was speaking ahead of today’s Nations League group decider with Croatia as he aims to lead his country to next summer’s semi-final.
Coming just a few months after the heartache of losing to the same opponents in the World Cup semi-final, Kane is ready to turn that result around.
Victory would take England through to the inaugural finals of the competition and just two matches away from ending that long, painful wait for a trophy.
The tears may have dried up as Kane has got older, but England defeats used to make him cry when he was a boy.
Now he doesn’t want the 80,000 fans at Wembley to suffer that same feeling.
“I always wind my missus up that I’d cry if we won a trophy with England,” he jokes.
“She said that if you don’t cry when I walk down the aisle, she won’t go through with it!
“I’m not a crier, I’m not someone who cries a lot. My missus has probably never seen me cry. So we’ll have to see what comes first, that or an England trophy. I used to cry when I was younger when England lost. And even when I lost at football.
“It was a close one after the Croatia semi-final. It was a mixed bag of emotions when we went out. Of course I was devastated, but I didn’t want to break down in tears.
“I wanted to stay strong and be there for my team-mates, obviously being one of the leaders in the team.”
With Tottenham Hotspur currently playing their home games at Wembley, Kane is used to playing under the arch.
But he knows this match has more riding on it than virtually all his other appearances at the national stadium.
“This is a massive game,” he says. “No one knows how big this competition will be in the future, but it’s a great opportunity for us to reach a semi-final.
“I’ve had a bit of experience of big games at Wembley with Spurs, in the Champions League with 80,000 people on the side and singing.
“I want to feel that feeling with England. That will definitely be the case if we win the game.
“I’m excited for it. We know it’s an important and big game for us.
“We have to show we’ve come a little bit further from the World Cup and show what we can do.”
After a year in which the country has fallen back in love with England after their first World Cup semi-final for 28 years, Kane wants to cap the year on a high note.
And these Nations League games have allowed Gareth Southgate’s men to not let their standards slip after the highs of the summer.
“International football can mean it takes another two years before a crowd is excited again and fully into it,” he added.
“This is chance for us to get to another big game, hopefully next June. Croatia beat us in the summer and we will remember that.
“I would say we are a better team now. We have learnt a lot from those experiences and we learnt a lot from beating Spain recently.
“We said after the summer’s World Cup in Russia the most important thing was not to fall off and get to the Euros without any momentum.
“It was important to carry that on and we have done well in this Nations League.
“There is no better way to finish the year than by winning this game and getting to the semi-finals.”
Kane has not scored in his past seven England appearances, which comes after his heroics at the World Cup when his six goals won him the coveted Golden Boot award.
And England’s No.9 wants to end that drought as well as lead his team to victory.
He adds: “I have showed my game is not just about scoring goals.
“But there is nothing more I want to do than score and win the game.
“I will do everything I can to help the team, get an assist and bring other players into the game.
“But it would be the perfect end to the year if we win and I grab myself a goal.”