Harry Kane has said he enjoys the responsibility of captaining England but insists his personality does not change depending on whether he is wearing the armband.
Kane is set to skipper Tottenham for the next couple of months at least while Hugo Lloris is sidelined with the dislocated elbow he picked up in last weekend’s 3-0 defeat at Brighton. On Monday night, Kane will lead England out in against Bulgaria as the Three Lions look to bounce back from Friday’s defeat to the the Czech Republic.
Speaking to the Mirror, the 26-year-old discussed leading by example and facing high pressure situations for both England and Spurs.
“From my point of view, I’m with the captain role at England and take that responsibility on, obviously I will be captain (at Spurs) for however long Hugo (Lloris) is out,” Kane said. “But I have said before that my game doesn’t change, my personality doesn’t change.
“I am still the same person, I still try and lead by example on and off the pitch and I will continue to do that.
“I have been in high pressure situations before in my career, whether that is going through goal droughts, playing in high-pressure games or not playing well as a team. It is something I will take in my stride and improve on.
“I think you need to lead by example. Not getting too down when you lose a game, not getting too high when you win games. It is a long, old season for club and country ahead – a lot of games to be played so there are going to be tough periods.
“We are in one now as a club, hopefully we can win Monday night for England and that will put Friday night less impactful and then I will go back to Spurs and take that in my stride and see how that progresses.”
Kane found the net from the penalty spot against the Czech Republic but will be disappointed after missing a couple of good opportunities to score from open play. Yet when asked about his England goal record, the striker suggested he is focussed on creating more chances for his teammates rather than adding to his goal tally.
He added: “It’s great to be scoring goals but even better to be winning games. Whenever we lose or I feel I haven’t played well, I look back on my game and see what I could have done better. I still feel I can improve.
“I am scoring goals but can I get more assists, create more chances? So yeah, I always look at little things I can get better at.
“Yes, the England form has been good but as ever, it can be better. We will see if I can continue scoring. It has been a good campaign but important I do not stop now.”
Kane will be desperate to get back among the goals when Tottenham face Watford in the Premier League on Saturday after drawing a blank against Brighton.
Kane will score more goals than assists but his role is changing