Gareth Southgate: Harry Kane didn’t need picking up after World Cup penalty miss

England boss Gareth Southgate says there has been no need to put an arm around Harry Kane after his World Cup heartache.

The England captain missed a late penalty in the quarter-final defeat to France in Qatar and has subsequently said he will be haunted by it forever.

However, he has not let it affect his domestic form having scored nine times in 17 games for Spurs since the restart, which has seen him become the club’s all-time record goalscorer.

History: made ✅Harry Kane's record-breaking goal... pic.twitter.com/mYkONzKzFY

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 5, 2023

He will also break his country’s record the next time he finds the back of the net, which could well be in forthcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers against Italy and Ukraine next week.

Southgate says he has not deemed it necessary to “interfere” with Kane while he’s been on club business but sees a player as hungry as ever to score goals.

“I don’t think it’s a big hurdle really,” he said. “I had a good chat with him while we were away. I sent him a message before he went back to his club and then I took a step back and had a look at how it was.

“And I haven’t really felt the need to pick the phone up. It (his recovery) is there in his performances for Spurs.

“Sometimes you can busy yourself and look for a pat on the back by getting in touch with a player but I can’t take any credit for what he’s done.

“What I’ve observed is a player still super-confident, still ready to perform, still hungry to score goals. He’s obviously gone through the personal landmark with Spurs and then there’s this one that he’s going to nail with us at some point.

“So, I actually spoke to him earlier this week, but I’ve been able to take a step back and let him get on with it.