Micah Richards believes Harry Kane has taken his finishing 'to the next level' after the England captain scored in the Three Lions' 2-0 Nations League win over Czechia. Anthony Gordon opened the scoring in Prague before Kane's clinical strike sealed England's first victory of their Nations League campaign.
Richards praises Kane's finishing
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, Richards lauded the 33-year-old's recent form, saying he has improved his game over recent months. 'I had this debate a while ago, and I think the debate was something like Rooney, Kane and Shearer, or something like that,' he said. 'And I picked Shearer, I did, because when I was growing up, the goals that you scored and headers and all that, it was amazing.
'But now, I genuinely think Kane's taken it to the next level. I think for someone not to be particularly strong, someone not to be particularly fast, obviously his brain's on a different level.'
Kane's deadly finishing
Richards highlighted Kane's all-round finishing ability, noting his proficiency with both feet and his movement in the box. 'He uses his body well, but I wouldn't say, you wouldn't say Kane is a strong player. You wouldn't say, oh, that is his attribute, but he uses his body well. I'll take that. But his finishing, right foot, left foot, it's not normal. The purity of the strike, it's not normal.'
Despite acknowledging missed penalties against Spain and France in big games, Richards insisted Kane's finishing remains exceptionally reliable. 'When he's in the box, I never think he's going to miss. He always seems to hit the target. Yes, he missed the penalty against Spain. And yes, he missed the penalty against France in big games. But when he's in the box, yeah, his finishing is so deadly. It's so deadly.'
Kane reflects on victory
After the match, Kane told BBC Radio 5 Live: 'Job done, it was a professional performance. It wasn't the most exciting game of football but we did what we had to. Won the game, good clean sheet and we take it into the next one.'
The England captain also praised fellow goalscorer Anthony Gordon, who has been in impressive form for Barcelona. 'He's showing that he belongs at the highest level, for Barcelona and England. His performances in the last couple of games have been some of his best that he has played in an England shirt and I think he is just relishing putting the shirt on and being one of the main men in the team. He is an important player for us and he showed that during the World Cup.'
Kane, who has enjoyed a remarkable 12 months of goalscoring for both Bayern Munich and England, is the bookies' favourite to win next month's Ballon d'Or in London. England return to action on Saturday when they take on Croatia in Rijeka.
