Harry Kane accidentally broke a rare UEFA rule while missing a second-half penalty for England against Spain in the Nations League at Wembley. The Bayern Munich striker saw his spot-kick crash against the underside of the crossbar, but the manner of the miss may have spared him further embarrassment.
Double-touch incident
The penalty was awarded after Italian referee Davide Massa consulted the VAR pitchside monitor and ruled that Jude Bellingham had been fouled by Rodri inside the box. Kane stepped up to take the kick but, as he struck the ball, his standing left leg touched it before his right foot made contact.
That accidental double-touch means that, had the ball gone in, the goal would have been disallowed. Under IFAB rules, scored penalties involving a double-touch are retaken, while missed spot-kicks result in an indirect free-kick being awarded to the opposition.
Impact of the miss
As Kane's effort did not cross the line, the incident went unpunished beyond the miss itself. The England captain's rare breach of the rules went unnoticed in real time, but the footage shows the ball moving twice before his shot struck the bar.
The match continued with the scoreline unaffected by the unusual sequence of events at Wembley.
