'Wrap him in cotton wool!' - Thomas Tuchel told he'll have a major England problem if Harry Kane isn't fit for 2026 World Cup with Ollie Watkins 'not in the same bracket'

Kane has not steered clear of treatment tables over the course of his career, but has been able to avoid the most serious of setbacks. That has allowed him to become a record-setting performer at domestic and international level.

He is Tottenham’s all-time leading scorer and holds a similar record with England, having found the target for them on 76 occasions through 110 appearances. He fills the armband for his country and has guided them to back-to–back European Championship finals.

Heartache has been suffered there, but Kane did break his trophy duck when becoming a Bundesliga title winner with Bayern Munich in 2024-25. At 32 years of age, he now has his sights set on more major honours.

The expectation is that he will be England’s No.9 at next summer’s World Cup, having shown no sign of slowing down and with few alternative options breathing down his neck. If the Three Lions are to roar in 2026, then Kane will be required to lead from the front.

Campbell admits as much, with the ex-Spurs forward - speaking via Stake, where you can get Bundesliga odds - telling GOAL when asked if England could prevail without Kane: “It’s a difficult one. You have got [Ollie] Watkins, who is a quality player but he’s not in the same bracket as Harry Kane yet. It would be an issue.

“We have got a lot of good, technical 10s who could potentially play higher up the pitch like a false nine. [Marcus] Rashford has played No.9 before and he’s doing well this season. It would be a big miss for us, but we would have to cope somehow. Maybe come the start of next year we just wrap him in cotton wool and tell him not to play too much for Bayern!”

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Kane is being backed to play on for some time yet, with former England striker Emile Heskey telling GOAL when asked if one of the most fearsome frontmen on the planet could emulate Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo by reaching 100 international goals: “Why not? He’s a goalscorer, that’s what he prides his game on – getting goals. A lot of people say he’s got to do this and this, but when your numbers stack up the way that his do, you kind of look past a lot of it.

“When you look at the way that he plays, and it’s about looking after your body – if he can have the right diet, the right rest, which is a key thing when you look at the amount of games and the intensity of the games, the key thing is can he get enough rest and get recuperated for the next game. He’ll be fine. I played to 38, it wasn’t at that level as I was in the Championship – which is actually quite relentless with Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday-Tuesday – but he’ll cope fine.”

Ex-England captain Stuart Pearce also told GOAL when quizzed on whether Kane has more major tournaments left in him: “He’s got another World Cup in him next summer, then you are looking two years beyond that. He’ll be a 35-year-old.

“He is incredibly professional. His game is not based on blistering speed. I see no reason at all to bow out. I saw Teddy Sheringham wheeling it out late on in his career. Teddy played with his head and I think Harry Kane does as well. I see no problem going forward. The big question mark will be, who’s coming along to dislodge him? At the moment, I’m not seeing anyone that is consistent enough.”

Kane is the only recognised striker to have been selected by Thomas Tuchel in the latest England squad. With tickets to the 2026 World Cup already safely secured, the Three Lions are readying themselves for final qualification fixtures against Serbia and Albania.

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