England's Harry Kane marked his record-equalling 125th appearance with two goals and an assist in a 3-0 Nations League win over the Czech Republic at Wembley. Kane drew level with former goalkeeper Peter Shilton as England's most-capped men's player. The 33-year-old's tally now stands at 91 international goals. Kane's performance earned praise from teammate Jude Bellingham, who hailed him as England's greatest-ever player.
Bellingham told ITV that Kane is "an unbelievable human being, as a captain and a man." He added that playing with Kane is an honour and that he is "pretty unmatched" in terms of his skills on the pitch. Kane helped create England's opener with a cross that was turned into his own net by Czech defender Vladimir Coufal. Manager Thomas Tuchel also paid tribute to Kane's consistency, saying it's "exceptional every single match."
Kane's milestone appearance came at Wembley, where his England journey began over 11 years ago. He made an instant impact on his 2015 debut against Lithuania in a European Championship qualifier, scoring 79 seconds later. Kane has become one of the defining figures of the national team, breaking Wayne Rooney's scoring record and surpassing him as England's most-capped outfield player at the World Cup earlier this year.
The 33-year-old also broke Gary Lineker's England men's World Cup scoring record this past summer, drawing level on 10 with a double against Croatia, then moving clear with a goal against Panama. By the end of the tournament, Kane had extended the record to 14 World Cup goals. He also holds the England record for major tournament appearances with 36, goals at major tournaments (21), major tournament games as captain (32), and goals at Wembley (31).
Kane is now nine shy of the elusive 100-goal mark that only three male players have reached in history - Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, Argentina great Lionel Messi, and Ali Daei of Iran. Shilton, whose cap record has stood since 1990, posted a congratulatory message on X, saying Kane will "go on and beat [the record] in November, I'm sure of that, and maybe go on and set a record that will never be beaten."
In other Nations League action, world champions Spain recovered to beat Croatia 2-1, with Mikel Merino scoring twice to extend their unbeaten run to 42 matches and seal a place in the Nations League quarterfinals. Spain top the group with 12 points, while England have nine, and Croatia are on three. The Czechs are still without a point.
Thomas Tuchel was full of praise for his team after reaching 20 wins in the fewest games of any England manager in the nation's history, with 26. He said the team played a "very good match, very fluid" and dominated throughout. The final two rounds of the group stage will be played in the November international break. The eight teams finishing in the top two of the four League A groups will play in the knockout rounds beginning in March.
Key points
- Harry Kane equalled Peter Shilton's record of 125 caps and took his tally to 91 international goals in a 3-0 win over the Czech Republic.
- Jude Bellingham hailed Harry Kane as England's greatest-ever player after his milestone appearance.
- Spain sealed a place in the Nations League quarterfinals with a 2-1 win over Croatia, extending their unbeaten run to 42 matches.
