England captain Harry Kane has spoken of what it would mean to lift the Euro 2024 trophy on Sunday night
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Harry Kane has said he would swap everything in his career for a first major trophy with England on Sunday night and hopes the Three Lions can earn the "respect of the footballing world" with victory over Spain in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin.
Kane has famously never won a trophy in his entire career, having missed out on the major prizes with Tottenham, England and last season at Bayern Munich.
With the Three Lions, Kane came close three years ago as Gareth Southgate's side were beaten by penalties in the final of Euro 2020, which was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Back in the final this time, the captain is hoping for a different outcome.
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Speaking ahead of the game, he said: "It would mean everything. It would be the most incredible feeling. For the fans to have that moment in history and celebrate that, it would be special.
"We have been here before, it was a tough finish in the last Euros, there’s extra hunger and fire in our belly to make sure this one goes our way."
Asked if he would swap everything in his career for a trophy on Sunday, he said: "Of course, it's no secret that I haven't won a team trophy.
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"Every year that goes by you're more motivated and you're more determined to change that and now I have the opportunity to win one of the biggest trophies you could ever win and to make history with my nation.
England manager Gareth Southgate with Harry Kane after the international friendly match between England and Bosnia & Herzegovina at St James' Park in June 2024. (Image credit: Getty Images)
"I'm extremely proud to be English. I'd swap everything in my career to have a special night by winning [on Sunday]."
The 30-year-old also spoke about changing perceptions of England as he said: "I've travelled to World Cups, European Championships, watching as an observer and watched highlight reels of matches on the big screens - and we weren't in any of them.
"We needed to change that. We had high expectations but they didn't match where we were performance-wise. Now the high expectations are still there but we've had consistent performances, certainly over three of the last four tournaments and a quarter-final in the fourth.
"In the end you have to be in the latter stages of tournaments to learn how to win the big games. A lot of records we have broken but we know we have to do this one, to get this trophy to really feel the respect of the footballing world."
Ben Hayward is the Weekend Editor of FourFourTwo. A European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.
