Gary Neville says it ‘wouldn’t send a great message to the squad’ if England manager Gareth Southgate dropped Harry Kane for the Euro 2024 final.
Southgate is facing fresh and increasing calls to drop his captain after substitute Ollie Watkins scored a late winner to decide the semi-final against the Netherlands on Wednesday night.
Kane struggled to make an impact against the Dutch – though he did win and then score the penalty that dragged England back level after Xavi Simons’ 7th-minute opener in Dortmund.
The penalty was Kane’s third goal of the Euros, making him the joint-top goalscorer at the tournament, and Neville believes it would be a mistake to make a change up top for Sunday’s final against Spain.
‘I spoke to Wayne Rooney four or five weeks ago before the tournament started and he said Harry Kane, and that’s his opinion, is the greatest England player ever,’ Neville told Sky Sports.
‘That is massive praise from someone who has been around the block with England in Rooney.
‘I wouldn’t fight to disagree with him either. Harry Kane has been absolutely sensational. I always called him gold when he was at Tottenham, you just know full well that he’s going to deliver for you. He’s a solid character.
‘I think he’s obviously below his best in this tournament, it does look like he is carrying something and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if it emerged in a week or two that he’s had issues during the tournament with something that he’s trying to bandage up.
‘You look at that [knockout] record now and some of the greatest goalscorers of all time are on that list, obviously Kylian Mbappe (who has eight knockout goals, the same number as Gerd Muller, Miroslav Klose and Antoine Griezmann) is seen as the best player in the world right now.
‘Harry Kane is someone, ultimately at this moment in time, who will not be dropped by Gareth Southgate.
‘I know there is a sense that people think we are better without him, but it wouldn’t send a great message to the squad internally. He’s very clearly their leader and Southgate has full, total faith in him.
England’s Euro 2024 final opponents Spain finished top of Group B before beating Georgia, hosts Germany and World Cup finalists France in the knockout stages to reach the showpiece event in Berlin.