Harry Kane has rubbished the suggestion England players were distracted by the news of Manchester City’s breaches of financial regulations, following Saturday’s 3-2 Nations League loss to Spain.
In huge breaking news on Friday, barely 24 hours before England’s clash with the World Cup winners, it was revealed that City had been found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges of financial misconduct levelled against them by the Premier League.
Potential sanctions include the potential enforced relegation from the Premier League, and the stripping of the club’s titles during the period of their offences. More likely, however, is the possibility of a huge fine or a points deduction.
Discussion of the verdict has dominated the build-up to Friday’s Nations League clash, with pundits Roy Keane and Ian Wright both calling for City’s titles to be voided ahead of kick-off.
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In spite of the news, three current City players – Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guehi and Elliot Anderson – started for England as they were beaten 3-2 by Spain.
Former City keeper James Trafford, now at Leeds, also started in goal, while another summer exit, Barcelona’s Rodri, was also at the heart of Spain’s midfield.
An error-strewn performance from England saw both Guehi and O’Reilly directly at fault for Spanish goals, while Rodri conceded a penalty with a clumsy tackle on Jude Bellingham. However, his blushes were spared, as Kane slipped and hit the crossbar.
Kane was asked at full-time whether he felt his team-mates might have been distracted by the news of the verdict hanging over City, a proposition which he quickly dismissed.
He told ITV Sport: “There was a discussion, but at the end of the day when we’re with England, that’s been a big plus for us, we kind of put club football to one side, and it was no different this week.”
Kane ‘proud’ of England showing in defeat
Despite England’s inconsistent display, where they went behind in the second minute and retook the lead before succumbing to a Spain comeback themselves, Kane was insistent the Three Lions could be proud of their showing.
“I spoke before that we reached good levels at the World Cup but didn’t quite put a full 90 minutes together. Probably similar again today.
“We had a couple of good moments. That period was as good as we’ve played in a long, long time and that’s the standard we know we can reach.
“We’re playing against the world champions, the European champions, and we went toe-to-toe.
“On another day for sure we’d have won that game. We have to take the positives from it. We have to dust ourselves down and go again in a few days.”
England are back in action on Tuesday night when they head to the Czech Republic in another Nations League Group C clash.
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