World Cup 2018: England name Harry Kane as captain for tournament

The Tottenham star will lead his country in Russia this summer

Ben Burrows
Tuesday 22 May 2018 09:54 BST
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England World Cup squad stats

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Harry Kane has been named as England's captain for the World Cup in Russia this summer.

The FA confirmed the news on Tuesday morning with the 24-year-old Tottenham star now set to lead his country to their 15th global tournament.

Manager Gareth Southgate said: “Harry has some outstanding personal qualities. 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.”

Southgate named his skipper for the tournament during a meeting with the squad at St George's Park on Monday night.

Kane first captained the Three Lions for last summer’s World Cup qualifier in Scotland before going on to wear the armband on a further three occasions.

Prior to bursting on to the senior scene with a goal just 79 seconds into his debut in 2015, the reigning England Player of the Year represented his nation at U17, U19, U20 and U21 level.

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