Kane’s terrifying season—36 goals and 5 assists; he alone can dismantle Croatia.

We’ve talked about defense—now let’s discuss England’s sharpest knife: Harry Kane.

This season, Kane has put up the most outrageous numbers of his professional career at Bayern Munich: 36 goals and 5 assists in the Bundesliga, and 61 goals in 51 matches across all competitions. Among the top five European leagues, the only forward ahead of anyone else is Haaland with 27— the gap is simply absurd. Kane alone is almost like an entire attacking system—he can drop back to receive and organize, win chances in the box, pull wide and deliver crosses, and do almost everything.

England’s attack is built entirely around Kane. Croatia’s center-back pairing of Gvardiol and Pongracic still has issues with defensive coordination. If Kane drops back to receive in midfield, will Croatia’s center-backs follow? If they do, there’s space behind for Bellingham and Gordon to make forward runs; if they don’t, Kane can calmly turn and fire or play a pass. This is the tactical value of a top striker—one player is enough to tie up an entire back line.

Multiple media outlets have predicted that Kane will score in the opening match. If Kane breaks the deadlock first, England can comfortably play a defense-to-counterattack game, and Croatia will be in serious trouble. Personally, I back Kane to score the first goal of this World Cup—backed by action—showing the whole world: England’s captain is here.

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