Kane breaks into England's top 10 most capped players

Harry Kane continues to break records and, barring an unexpected dip in form, he is inching ever closer to one that would make him the most memorable player in English football. In the match against Finland, the Bayern Munich striker has reached 100 appearances for England, something that only nine other players in history have achieved in a country that has always had great competition. He is one short of becoming England's most-capped player, a relatively achievable milestone given his career and the years he still has left in his game.

As of Tuesday, Kane has played 100 matches in an England shirt. Only Billy Wright with 105, Frank Lampard and Bobby Charlton with 106, Ashley Cole with 107, Bobby Moore with 108, Steven Gerrard with 114, David Beckham with 115, Wayne Rooney with 120 and Peter Shilton with 125 have played more than the former Spurs man.

In the remainder of 2024, Kane could only reach 104 appearances, as the Three Lions will only play four more Nations League games. Therefore, whatever happens, he will be 10th in England history at the end of the year, as there are no active team-mates who can come close to his numbers either.

 

September 9, 2024

Looking ahead to 2025, Harry Kane could already overtake quite a few of his countrymen in this prestigious ranking, as the 2026 World Cup qualifiers will be played in their entirety next year and consist of 10 matchdays. If he plays the four remaining matches in 2024 and does not miss even one in 2025, the Bayern Munich striker could reach 114 international appearances, which would put him on the brink of the all-time English podium.

Moreover, the England striker has long since become the team's all-time leading goalscorer, surpassing Wayne Rooney (52). With 66 goals, he is now only competing with himself to set a record that will be difficult to match for decades to come. Kane has also scored in 49 different matches, the most number of goals in different international matches for England, ahead of Rooney (43).

The Waltahamstow native still has one more milestone to improve on, however, and that is the number of victories with the England national team. So far, he has won 60 games before this 100th match and has to win a lot to get closer in winning percentage to those ahead of him in the table, as Frank Lampard won 62 of 106, Ashley Cole triumphed in 63 of 107, Peter Shilton won 66 of his 125 games, Bobby Moore won 67 of 108, David Beckham won 68 of 115, Steven Gerrard won 71 of 114 and Wayne Rooney, the most victorious, won 72 of 120 games.

Looking ahead to this important date, Kane reflected on what he had achieved with the Three Lions: "These 100 caps have come so quickly, especially in recent years with several tournaments in such a short space of time. The goals were similar. I was on 30 and suddenly... I went to 50 and 60. At 31, I feel good physically and mentally and players like Cristiano Ronaldo, who are older, have inspired me to know that I can continue to play at a high level for a long time,’ concluded the Briton in statements made public in relation to his achievement.