World Cup 2026: Why Harry Kane could play less minutes for England in USA, Canada and Mexico this summer | Football news

England has three strikers in this World Cup, and the players who will replace Harry Kane have never had such an important role.

In this hotly contested World Cup, the question on everyone’s mind is how many minutes the England captain will be able to play.

Since Russia eight years ago, traditional tournament talk has revolved around who is Kane’s best student.

But the chatter around the camp is different this time, with Ivan Toney and Ollie Watkins expected to get more game time than they have in previous competitions.

Why? Because Kane is 32 years old, the heat and humidity will be disabling at times, and, frankly, England can only win the World Cup if Kane is fit and firing in the final stages of the tournament.

Furthermore, Kane has played more football this season than in any of the last three years.

In his final season at Tottenham, he played a total of 3,934 minutes.

In helping Bayern Munich to the Bundesliga title this season, he has scored 4,423 goals – almost a thousand more than he did in his first season in Germany.

Watkins told me he hopes all three strikers get their time in the North American sun.

“Everyone has a role to play in this tournament,” said the recently crowned Europa League champion. “Whether it’s in the early stages, in the later stages – you just have to be ready at the end of the day.

“We all work together as a team to achieve something special.”

By the end of Euro 2024, Kane was completely exhausted. Although he insists that this was not the case, the truth is that he has limped in this competition, straining his back, and sitting on the pitches in the quarter and semi finals, I was struck by Kane’s walking around the pitch.

When the game cameras were focused on the play, off the ball, Kane was really suffering. Tuchel is determined that this will not happen again to his talisman and top goalscorer.

Remember, this is a newly expanded tournament again, with 48 countries and an additional playoff round on the way to the final.

And the FA expects any game that kicks off before 5pm to see temperatures of 30C and above. Two group games in England start at 4pm, the other at 5pm.

All that combined means that Tuchel plans to wrap Kane in cotton wool – or rather, icy towels – as much as possible.

The England manager has previously referred to some of his players as “finishers” – options to come off the bench and provide something different up front, such as Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze, or to be used as late substitutes to play a role in a game England are winning.

Watkins thinks England’s attack is well-rounded.

“Ivan and I are different players and you need that. You need to be flexible,” he continued.

“Ivan is a proven goalscorer, he has shown it in all his performances and during the last Euro there were times when he arrived when the team needed him, and I had my time in the semi-final as well. [winner against the Netherlands].”

And so it will fall to Toney and Watkins to do a lot of hard yards for their country in this world cup.

Will Kane need to be risked at all against Panama in the final Group L game, for example, if England have already sealed a place in the knockout stages?

Do you need to beat yourself up in the heat if England beat Ghana 3-0 on match day two? All the ifs and buts, of course, but they are plausible scenarios that Tuchel and his support staff have been preparing for.

Although Kane wishes to play every minute of every game for his country, it will not happen. Expect to see the captain staying cool and warming the bench, more than ever.