* Playing his 80th international, scored England’s equaliser early in the second half against defending champions France
* He scored four goals at last year’s European Championship to help England reach a first major final since 1966
* Kane, who is closing in on Jimmy Greaves’s record as Tottenham’s record goalscorer, is clinical with either foot and his head
* But in recent years, he has also become a provider, dropping back regularly to hold up play and turn provider for both Spurs and England
SuperSport
Harry Kane scored from a penalty in the quarterfinal match against France to join Wayne Rooney as all-time England goalscoring record but he missed a second penalty that could have made him one up ahead of Rooney.
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The captain, playing his 80th international, scored England’s equaliser early in the second half at the Al Bayt Stadium in Qatar.
The Tottenham forward scored his first senior international goal just seconds into his debut as a Wembley substitute against Lithuania in March 2015.
The 29-year-old was named as Gareth Southgate’s skipper ahead of the 2018 World Cup and led the team to the semifinals, bagging the Golden Boot with six goals in Russia.
He scored four goals at last year’s European Championship to help England reach a first major final since 1966.
Kane, who is closing in on Jimmy Greaves’s record as Tottenham’s record goalscorer, is clinical with either foot and his head but in recent years, he has also become a provider, dropping back regularly to hold up play and turn provider for both Spurs and England.
Wayne Rooney
Kane was born in east London and joined the Spurs academy in 2009.
He had a number of loan spells as a young player as he tried to established himself before his breakthrough season at Tottenham in 2014/15.
He has won the Premier League Golden Boot three times since then but has so far failed to win silverware for club or country, despite coming agonisingly close.
As well as the near-misses for England, Kane was on the losing side when Tottenham reached the Champions League final for the first time in their history in 2019, going down 2-0 to Liverpool in Madrid.
Meanwhile, Portugal fans were overcome with sadness and frustration on Saturday after their fancied team crashed out of the World Cup to Morocco, a lower-ranked side that had already ousted Spain.
Supporters, many wearing scarves in the green and red colors of the Portuguese flag as they watched the match in Lisbon’s bars and restaurants, had hoped to see their country reach the semifinals.
For them, the result was deeply frustrating.
Portugal, fresh from their knockout demolition of Switzerland, were beaten by Morocco 1-0. The country’s all-time top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo was again out of the starting line-up after being benched for the last-16 tie against Switzerland.
Ronaldo, 37, left Saturday’s game in tears. The country’s football federation had earlier had to publicly deny reports that the skipper had threatened to leave during the tournament.
Asked if the result could have been different if Ronaldo had played from the beginning of the game, Portuguese fan Filipa Ramires said “it wouldn’t have mattered”.
Ronaldo choked up with emotion as the tears ran down his cheeks. He momentarily covered his face with his hand, but couldn’t hide his disappointment as it was likely the last FIFA World Cup match and probably his last chance to win soccer’s biggest prize.
When it mattered most, he couldn’t conjure up the kind of soccer magic that has made him one of the greatest players the sport has ever seen.
Ronaldo was dropped from the starting lineup for the second straight match on Saturday. The five-time player of the year came on as a substitute in the second half with his team already trailing, but his one real chance was saved easily by the opposing goalkeeper.
It was a sad ending for Ronaldo on the day he made his 196th international appearance, tied for the most in the men’s game with Kuwait forward Badr Al-Mutawa.
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He leaves Qatar as the only player to have scored in five World Cups but remains with eight goals at the tournament, one shy of Eusébio’s record with Portugal.
Ronaldo, the all-time leading scorer in men’s international soccer with 118 goals, did not say anything about his future after the match, going straight to the team bus from the locker room.
He had said before the World Cup he did not plan to retire from the national team, and that he planned to play at least through the 2024 European Championship in Germany — eight years after he helped Portugal win its only major title at Euro 2016.
Ronaldo was first dropped to the bench in the round of 16 against Switzerland, making an appearance as a substitute. His replacement in that match, Goncalo Ramos scored a hat trick in the 6-1 bvictory.
Ramos was again selected ahead of Ronaldo on Saturday and Portugal coach Fernando Santos said “no regrets” not starting Ronaldo, adding: “Cristiano is a great player, he came in when we thought it was necessary.”
After receiving the captain’s armband from Portugal defender Pepe in the 51st minute, Ronaldo rushed onto the field and started encouraging his teammates. As time ran down, he raised his arms toward the Portugal fans — heavily outnumbered by the Moroccans — and asked for their support.
Ronaldo helped increase the intensity of a Portugal attack that struggled to get past the well-organized Moroccan defense. He immediately created an opportunity with a cross into the area, but then lost possession shortly afterward.
He also set up a shot by João Félix in the 82nd, but his teammate’s attempt was saved. Then Ronaldo had that last-gasp shot in stoppage time that never was a real threat.
Ronaldo, who has never scored in the knockout stage at the World Cup, quickly made his way off the field after the final whistle and was crying by the time he entered the tunnel heading into the locker rooms.
Morocco celebrate
Some Moroccan players went to console him, but there were no Portugal teammates nearby as he walked off. Most of them stayed on the field at Al Thumama Stadium and thanked the Portugal fans for their support.
Portugal were trying to make it to the World Cup semifinals for the third time, having finished third in 1966 and fourth in 2006. The team hadn’t gotten past the round of 16 since that tournament in Germany 16 years ago.
The next chance to win the golden trophy will come in four years at the 2026 World Cup in North America, but it will likely be without Ronaldo on the team.—Sources, AFP APNews & Reuters
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