Gary Cahill ‘there to help’ Harry Kane balance the pressures of goalscoring and captaining England at the World Cup

Leading man | England captain Harry Kane
Action Images via Reuters/John Sibley
Simon Johnson4 June 2018

Gary Cahill believes it is crucial that he and the rest of England's senior players help ease the burden on captain Harry Kane at the World Cup this summer.

Kane won the race for the armband ahead of the likes of Chelsea skipper Cahill, Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and Tottenham team-mate Eric Dier.

There is already a lot of expectation on the Spurs striker's shoulders to score the goals to fire England to the latter stages in Russia, and Cahill feels it's vital that Kane has a lot of support to make the role as easy as possible.

"It's important the experienced members of the squad help him so he can concentrate on finding the net,” he told Standard Sport.

In Pictures | England vs Nigeria | 02/06/2018

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"The message has been clear from the manager that he wants a number of leaders - that is why he passed the armband on to a few players before the tournament. He wanted that group of leaders to help and share the workload.

"I'm there to help. I'm not there to preach to anyone, but I have experience of playing in big games.

"If people want to speak to me and likewise me with other people, the group is very tight in that way and everyone is approachable for any type of advice in good and bad moments.

"Everyone prepares in their own way. Some people want that, some people don't. We'll be ready fitness wise for sure, it's just about being ready in the mind in a positive way."

​Cahill has captained the national team five times himself and is the most-capped member of England's World Cup squad, with 59 appearances so far.

But the 32-year-old insists he has no complaints with being overlooked in favour of the younger man.

"It didn't surprise me when Gareth made that decision,” Cahill continued. “Harry is vocal and speaks when he needs to.

"Obviously in terms of England he has longevity, he will be around for many, many years. I've noticed no difference in the way he conducts himself since being named captain.

"He's had experience of it at Tottenham at certain times and he is more than capable in that role."

Photo: PA
PA

Kane has already got his summer off to the perfect start by scoring in England's 2-1 win over Nigeria on Saturday.

This will be the 24-year-old's second involvement at a major championships, but he is still looking to get off the mark having failed to make an impact at Euro 2016.

Photo: Reuters
REUTERS

Cahill, who put England in front against Nigeria with a fine header, said: "It was good to see Harry find the net already.

"There will be a lot on his shoulders this summer but he is more than capable of handling that.

"His goal-scoring record has been phenomenal over the last few seasons, but I was delighted to see him get among the goals.

"He doesn't need that much help with his confidence because his finishing is unbelievable. For a forward to be scoring goals ahead of the tournament is always a plus."

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