Kane shot past Wayne Rooney with his hit. The 29-year-old Tottenham star was overwhelmed when he experienced “a magical moment” in Naples. “It had to be a penalty, and when the ball hit the net, I had huge emotions.” At the World Cup in December, he missed a penalty against France in the quarter-finals, and the “Three Lions” were then eliminated 2-1 .
In the dressing room, the team presented a jersey with the number 54 and the name “Kane Record Breaker”. Rooney, whose previous record of 53 is now history, wrote: “I knew it wouldn’t take long, but it was quick. Great man, incredible goalscorer and an England legend.”
Southgate can party, Mancini can’t
Coach Gareth Southgate was also enthusiastic about his leading player. “For him to break the record in the light of recent history is a testament to his strength of character and mentality,” Southgate said. “He’s a brilliant professional.” Southgate himself is only the third England boss after Sir Alf Ramsey and Walter Winterbottom to have 50 wins. The success in Naples was also the first on Italian soil since 1961 and the first competitive win against Italy since 1977.
Coach Roberto Mancini’s host team, on the other hand, lost a European Championship qualifier for the first time in 41 games and thus botched the start of the title defense mission. The coach tried to emphasize the good points from the second half as the “Squadra Azzurra” dominated the match. “In the second half I saw a great Italian team and that bodes well for the future,” said Mancini. This gives the Italians a trip to Malta on Sunday, where three points are mandatory. England, on the other hand, host Ukraine, who had a day off on Thursday.
“Good feeling” for Ronaldo
Ronaldo wore his country’s colors for the 197th time against Liechtenstein on Thursday, setting a new world record for international appearances. Until Thursday he shared it with Kuwait’s Bader al-Mutawa. On top of that, the 38-year-old scored twice to make it 4-0, his team goals were 119 and 120. “CR7” scored via penalty and free-kick, both times the entire arena in Lisbon cheered for him. “It’s such a good feeling to be back playing for our Selecao and scoring goals,” Ronaldo wrote on Instagram afterwards.
Only the next few games will show what the role of team captain will look like in the future under coach Roberto Martinez. “It’s important that a player shows commitment and that we can use his experience and Cristiano shows that,” said the coach, who put World Cup reserve player Ronaldo in the starting XI. The Portuguese travel to Luxembourg on Sunday, where the star striker could improve his statistics further.