Harry Kane has been compared to a rusty Cristiano Ronaldo after a series of "lazy" performances for England at Euro 2024.
Article continues below
Article continues below
Article continues below
Ronaldo failed to inspire PortugalKane has also been unimpressiveJamie OāHara wants Kane to be droppedWHAT HAPPENED?
Former Premier League player and pundit Jamie OāHara did not hold back in his criticism of the Bayern Munich forward after a lacklustre display against Switzerland in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals. Despite having found the net twice in the competition, Kane has struggled to make an impact in attack and had to be taken off against the Swiss in the 109th minute despite the Three Lions looking for the winner.
AdvertisementGetty THE BIGGER PICTURE
O'Hara likened Kane to Ronaldo, who had a disastrous campaign with Portugal in Germany and was sent packing by France on Friday. The record goalscorer of the European Championship had to exit without a single strike to his name and subsequently, Roberto Martinez faced flak for sticking with him despite his unimpressive run. In a similar vein, O'Hara has now questioned Gareth Southgate's selection decisions and has urged the manager to axe Kane from the starting XI.
WHAT O'HARA SAID
In an interview with Grosvenor Sport, O'Hara said: "England had more problems with Harry Kane up front against Switzerland. He was non-existent. Itās like having Cristiano Ronaldo in the team ā heās only there because of his name. Gareth Southgate will never take him off because he thinks he might score ā and he has scored a couple in this tournament ā but heās miles off the pace at the moment.
āYou can say what you want about his overall game and what he brings to the team, but he hasnāt been good enough. Either Ivan Toney or Ollie Watkins probably deserve to start or at least get some minutes. England donāt need to keep Kane on the pitch anymore ā the whole point of doing that was because he could still take penalties, but England have top penalty-takers now."
DID YOU KNOW?
One of the primary concerns raised by OāHara is Kaneās apparent lack of physical fitness. He described the Bayern Munich forward as ālabouredā and ālazy,ā criticising his lack of movement and effort in front of goal.
āThere has to be a conversation about him not playing against the Netherlands ā he looks laboured, lazy, heās not making runs into the box and heās not busting a gut to score goals anymore," he said.
