Harry Kane’s top 10 England moments ahead of 100th cap

Harry Kane will become just the tenth man to reach 100 caps for England when he takes to the Wembley pitch against Finland on 10 September.

The 31-year-old is already England’s leading all-time goalscorer, having scored 66 goals since making his debut in a 4-0 win over Lithuania in March 2015.

The former Spurs man scored a header after just 79 seconds on his debut to mark the first goal of an impressive international career, and he will become part of an exclusive club on Tuesday, joining the company of England legends such as Peter Shilton, David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and Bobby Charlton.

As the Bayern Munich striker prepares to make his 100th appearance, The Independent takes a look at the top 10 highlights of his England career, from a debut strike to a World Cup golden boot.

10. Start as you mean to go on

Kane burst onto the scene at Spurs with a run of brilliant goalscoring form, and he was quickly called up to Roy Hodgson’s side for the Euro 2016 qualifiers.

He made his debut against Lithuania in March 2015, replacing Wayne Rooney as a 72nd-minute substitute, and took just 79 seconds to make his mark, scoring a header for the final goal of England’s 4-0 win.

9. Made captain after just two years

As Kane’s impressive form at club level continued, he quickly became a key component of the England team, and before long he found himself captaining the side.

The then-Spurs man wore the armband for the first time in June 2017, against Scotland in a qualifier for the 2018 World Cup. England had gone 2-0 down, but the captain completed the comeback with a stoppage-time goal to make it 2-2.

By the time the World Cup came round, Kane had established himself as England captain, and he led the Three Lions in Russia.

8. 50th England goal

Though he was chasing the record, which stood at 53 goals at this point in June 2022, Kane’s 50th goal for his country remained an important milestone, and he scored it in a 1-1 draw against Germany in Munich.

He became just the second player, after Rooney, to score 50 goals for the Three Lions when he slotted a penalty in the 88th minute.

7. Equalling England’s goalscoring record

Kane entered the 2022 World Cup with his status among the world’s best fully secured, and with Rooney’s record as all-time England top scorer in his sights.

The Three Lions met defending champions France at the quarter-final stage in Qatar, and in a time game in which Les Bleus had taken the lead in the first half, Kane equalised from the spot in the 54th minute after Bukayo Saka was brought down in the box.

This goal marked Kane’s 53rd for his country, and he became England’s joint-top goalscorer of all time. Unfortunately for the captain, it wasn’t to be his night in the end, as he missed from the spot in the 84th minute and England eventually lost 2-1.

6. A second successive semi-final

England had done brilliantly at the 2018 World Cup, and at the delayed Euro 2020 provided another chance for the Three Lions to shine, with several matches – including the final – played at Wembley.

They were heavily fancied against Ukraine as the two sides met at the quarter-final stage in July 2021, and the Three Lions delivered on their early promise by putting four goals past their opponents.

Kane beat the offside trap and slid in to score the first goal, adding a header later on as England won 4-0 and the captain put to bed any doubts about his form and current ability.

5. A goal to silence the old enemy

Questions had started to be asked over Kane’s involvement at Euro 2020 as the first three matches came and went without the England captain having scored a goal.

As the Three Lions lined up against Germany in the round of 16, the country held its breath as an even match provided chances for both sides, before Raheem Sterling scored late to give England a narrow lead.

And in the 86th minute, a counter-attack found its way to Jack Grealish on the wing, and the Manchester City man played an inviting ball into the box that Kane obligingly headed past Manuel Neuer to spark bedlam at a half-full Wembley.

4. First World Cup and goals in the opener

Kane entered the 2018 World Cup having cemented his place among the world’s best, though hopes for England to go far in the competition were far from high among fans back home. A fairly tepid display in the opening match against Tunisia did little to boost the confidence, until Kane squeezed in a 91st-minute winner for his second goal of the game to get England off to a good start in Russia.

3. Breaking the record

England had little time to recover from the disappointment of the 2022 World Cup loss, and before long they were in action again as they met Italy – who had beaten them in heartbreaking fashion in the final of Euro 2020 – in the qualifiers for Euro 2024.

Kane stepped up to take a penalty in the 44th minute and lashed it past Gianluigi Donnarumma to give England a 2-0 lead. The match ended 2-1 in a notable win for England on Italian soil, but it will forever be more notable for Kane, as his goal made him England’s top scorer of all time, overtaking Wayne Rooney to sit alone on 54 goals for the Three Lions.

2. A goal to put England in their first final since ‘66

By the time the semi-finals of Euro 2020 came around, the entirety of the country was gripped by football fever as Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions stood on the brink of the tournament’s final, which was to be held at Wembley.

The draw had opened up for England but Denmark would be no pushovers, as England found out when Mikkel Damsgaard gave the Scandinavians the lead in the 30th minute. A Simon Kjaer own goal levelled the contest, but it went all the way to extra-time at a tense Wembley.

England won a late penalty in the 104th minute, and Kane stepped up once more. Kasper Schemiechel was equal to him on this occasion, though the rebound fell nicely to the Englishman and he bundled it in to put his country in their first final since 1966.

1. World Cup golden boot

Though the single goals and individual moments are perhaps the more memorable highlights of Kane’s career, arguably his biggest achievement is the golden boot won at the 2018 World Cup.

The tournament may not have finished with a trophy for England, but the players had restored the feel-good feeling to the England team and there was plenty of hope for the future. To add to that, Kane received the golden boot for his six goals in Russia, and put his name on a list of era-defining players including Ronaldo, Thomas Muller, Gary Lineker and Miroslav Klose.