Gareth Southgate has announced the Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane will captain England at this summer’s World Cup in Russia.
The 24-year-old will lead England into their 15th World Cup in June. Southgate confirmed Kane, who has previously captained the team on four occasions, would captain the side during a team meeting at St George’s Park on Monday evening.
“Harry has some outstanding personal qualities,” Southgate said. “He is a meticulous professional and one of the most important things for a captain is that they set the standard every day.
“He has belief and high standards and it is a great message for the team to have a captain who has shown that it is possible to be one of the best in the world over a consistent period of time and that has been his drive.
“My feeling is that over the last 18 months in the camps that he’s been with us he has shown that he has got the desire to take that into a team environment and he recognises the importance of bringing others with him.
“Of course, Harry will need the support of the other good leaders that we have got around him. You don’t become a top team by just having a good captain with good values because that has got to spread right throughout the group but I think he is the one who is ready to take that challenge on.”
