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Italy national football team
Euro Champ Qualifying | Group Stage
Mar 23, 2023 at 7.45pm UK
 
England national football team

Italy
1 - 2
England

Retegui (56')
Di Lorenzo (53'), Jorginho (61'), Acerbi (90+2')
FT(HT: 0-2)
Rice (13'), Kane (44' pen.)
Rice (29'), Maguire (57'), Walker (71'), Shaw (78')

Harry Kane: 'Breaking England record means everything to me'

Harry Kane: 'Breaking England record means everything to me'
© Reuters
England captain Harry Kane opens up on a "magical moment" after breaking Wayne Rooney's all-time goalscoring record for the Three Lions.

England captain Harry Kane has claimed that becoming his nation's highest goalscorer of all time in their 2-1 win over Italy "means everything" to him.

The 29-year-old sat level with Wayne Rooney on 53 strikes before England travelled to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona for their opening Euro 2024 qualifier with Italy - renewing hostilities with the reigning champions nearly two years on from the Euro 2020 final.

Kane had a hand in the Three Lions' first goal on the night, as his blocked effort from a corner fell kindly for Declan Rice to fire home, and later in the first half, the Tottenham Hotspur talisman had prepared to meet Bukayo Saka's set-piece to the back post before Giovanni Di Lorenzo's arm got in the way.

Kane led the protestations to referee Srdjan Jovanovic, who awarded the spot kick after a look at the pitchside monitor, thereby presenting the striker with a golden opportunity to etch his name into English football folklore.

Kane - who became Tottenham Hotspur's all-time top goalscorer just last month - calmly sent Gianluigi Donnarumma the wrong way from the penalty spot to leave Rooney in his wake, scoring a record-breaking 54th England goal and letting emotion take over during the celebrations.

Harry Kane celebrates scoring for England on March 23, 2023© Reuters

Speaking to Channel 4 after the game, the 29-year-old paid tribute to his "special" colleague Rooney while hailing his "magical moment" as he officially became the greatest goalscorer that England has ever seen.

"It means everything. I was so excited to put the England shirt on and get back out here and get the campaign started for next year's Euros," the Tottenham striker said.

"It had to be a penalty and once it hit the back of the net, huge emotion. A magical moment. I was on the pitch when Wayne broke the record. I know what it meant to him and I was so proud of him.

"I remember when I gave him the boot for breaking the record he said he would be giving it back to me one day. A special man."

Despite entering the break with a comfortable 2-0 lead, England faced a barrage of Azzurri attacks in the second 45, and the hosts deservedly cut the deficit in half through debutant Mateo Retegui in the 56th minute.

England manager Gareth Southgate pictured on December 10, 2022© Reuters

Gareth Southgate's men were forced to see out the final 10 minutes with 10 men following Luke Shaw's sending off for two bookable offences, but the Three Lions ultimately got the job done to glean a slice of revenge for the Euro 2020 final.

Following the disappointment of a World Cup quarter-final exit, Kane believes that Thursday's win demonstrates that England are ready to go toe-to-toe with the big boys, adding: "Just a great night, we haven't won in Italy for so long and to score and win, so special.

"The World Cup was a difficult way to end but we spoke this week about getting back to it. We are one of the best teams in Europe. Getting this win shows we are ready for the challenge."

Meanwhile, manager Southgate affirmed that he "could not be happier" for his record-breaking captain, saying: "To break the record in the manner he did given the recent history is an indication of his strength of character and mentality. I couldn't be happier for him and his family, he is a brilliant professional."

England sit top of the Group C rankings thanks to their opening win, and Southgate's men now prepare to welcome Ukraine to Wembley on Sunday evening.

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Harry Kane celebrates scoring for England on March 23, 2023
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Group A

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Spain Spain870121
Q Scotland flag Scotland852117
3 Norway Norway832311
4 Georgia Georgia82248
5 Cyprus Cyprus80080

Group B

TeamPWDLPTS
Q France France871022
Q Netherlands Netherlands860218
3 Greece Greece841313
4 Ireland Rep. Ireland82066
5 Gibraltar flag Gibraltar80080

Group C

TeamPWDLPTS
Q England flag England862020
Q Italy Italy842214
3 Ukraine Ukraine842214
4 Macedonia N. Macedonia82248
5 Malta flag Malta80080

Group D

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Turkey Turkey852117
Q Croatia Croatia851216
3 Wales flag Wales833212
4 Armenia Armenia82248
5 Latvia Latvia81073

Group E

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Albania national flag Albania843115
Q Czech Republic Czech Republic843115
3 Poland Poland832311
4 Republic of Moldova Moldova824210
5 Faroe Islands Faroe Islands80262

Group F

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Belgium Belgium862020
Q Austria Austria861119
3 Sweden Sweden831410
4 Azerbaijan Azerbaijan82157
5 Estonia Estonia80171

Group G

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Hungary Hungary853018
Q Serbia Serbia842214
3 Montenegro Montenegro832311
4 Lithuania Lithuania81346
5 Bulgaria Bulgaria80444

Group H

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Denmark Denmark1071222
Q Slovenia Slovenia1071222
3 Finland Finland1060418
4 Kazakhstan Kazakhstan1060418
5 Northern Ireland flag N. Ireland103079
6 San Marino flag San Marino1000100

Group I

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Romania Romania1064022
Q Switzerland Switzerland1045117
3 Israel Israel1043315
4 Belarus Belarus1033412
5 Kosovo flag Kosovo1025311
6 Andorra flag Andorra100282

Group J

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Portugal Portugal10100030
Q Slovakia Slovakia1071222
3 Luxembourg flag Luxembourg1052317
4 Iceland Iceland1031610
5 Bosnia Bosnia H'vina103079
6 Liechtenstein flag Liechtenstein1000100


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