• Harry Kane dominates the show with his record-breaking goal total.
• Kane scored his 54th international goal in Thursday’s closely fought 2-1 victory over Italy.
• Kane scored a penalty kick in the 44th minute to overtake Wayne Rooney.

Harry Kane scored his 54th international goal in Thursday’s closely fought 2-1 victory over Italy, which marked the beginning of his team’s Euro 24 qualifying campaign. By doing so, he broke England’s all-time record for most goals scored.

When captain Kane scored a penalty kick in the 44th minute to overtake Wayne Rooney and help England defeat the European champions in Naples, Gareth Southgate’s team was already ahead by a goal thanks to Declan Rice.

Ten minutes after the break, Mateo Retegui, an Argentina-born striker, scored for the Italians. However, despite late pressure and Luke Shaw’s dismissal with ten minutes left, the Azzurri were unable to salvage a point in a rematch of the Euro 2020 final.

After missing a penalty in England’s World Cup quarterfinal loss to France in December, Tottenham striker Kane was tied with England captain Wayne Rooney for 53 goals.

However, this time at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, he made no mistakes from the spot after Giovanni Di Lorenzo was penalized for handball following a VAR check.

On Wednesday, England manager Gareth Southgate stated that if they were to win a major tournament for the first time in nearly six decades, they needed to start beating the big teams. Furthermore, beating Italy away for the first time since 1961 is a positive sign for the remainder of qualifying.

It was a frustrating night for Italy because of their poor first-half performance, which cost them the opportunity to give England another bloody nose after winning Euro 2020 at their expense and relegating them from the top tier of the Nations League.

After the break, they put in a strong effort and held England to very few points, demonstrating why Roberto Mancini’s team should be one of the two teams that qualify from a group of five teams that also includes Ukraine, North Macedonia, and Malta.

The first game since Gianluca Vialli’s death was on Thursday, and before the game, Mancini’s staff paid a moving tribute to the forward who played for Sampdoria, Juventus, and Chelsea.

Mancini and Vialli played together at Sampdoria in the 1980s and 1990s, and Vialli passed away in January at the age of 58 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

On the Maradona’s big screen, Vialli and Mancini were seen celebrating the Euro victory, and “Ciao Luca” was written on signs placed by the pitch.

However, England was the more dangerous team once the game started, and Bakayo Saka scored the game’s first goal in the eighth minute after the hosts had a brief early flurry.

After excellent work from Harry Kane and Jack Grealish, Jude Bellingham scored a powerful goal four minutes later to give the away team the lead from the following corner.

Rice confidently lashed in the opener after the ball fell to Kane, whose shot was blocked.

After scoring, England continued to push forward, and Kalvin Phillips’ low drive in the 32nd minute came close to doubling their lead before Di Lorenzo gave Kane the chance to make history.

Retegui, who was brilliantly found by Lorenzo Pellegrini, pulled the hosts back into the game with a smart low finish after the match appeared to be heading toward a straightforward England victory.

After Shaw received two quick yellow cards, the second for cutting down Retegui to halt a perilous Italy attack, the 45,000 fans cheered for Italy.

However, Italy was unable to capitalize on its advantage, and England persevered for an important victory.

Also Read

Harry Kane is adamant on beating England’s goal-scoring record

Harry Kane is adamant about beating England's goal-scoring record. Tottenham striker Kane...