Kane: England have another level to reach as Tuchel fumes after Norway win

Captain Harry Kane says England “have another level we can reach” as the Three Lions prepare for a World Cup semifinal showdown with Argentina in Atlanta. England scraped past Norway 2-1 after extra time on Saturday, a performance that left head coach Thomas Tuchel visibly frustrated. The German boss admitted his side “got lucky,” were “sloppy,” and made “a lot of technical mistakes.” Kane, 32, who has scored six goals in the tournament and is England’s joint top scorer alongside Jude Bellingham, understands Tuchel’s irritation. “When he sees us train and sees the closeness of us and sees what we can do, especially with the players we have, the way we attack, our one-on-ones and the skills, he just wants to see that version of us,” Kane explained. “He knows as much as anyone that it’s not as simple as that, we’re playing against good opposition and good teams. He’s trying to drag it out of us and we know ourselves we have another level we can reach. “We haven’t seen that yet, we’ve shown it in glimpses. Against Norway it was in glimpses. But we haven’t had full control that we would like and I feel we can have.” Bellingham, who bagged two goals in England’s last two matches, offered a different perspective. “It’s difficult out there, it’s a tough shift,” the Real Madrid midfielder said. “All the players have put in a tough shift. My thoughts and appreciation goes to the players out there. Maybe he [Tuchel] doesn’t know what it’s like to play in those conditions against Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard, Antonio Nusa and Alexander Sorloth. They’re not an easy team to play against. I can’t speak highly enough of the lads.” England, world champions in 1966, have reached the semifinals of a World Cup for only the fourth time. They lost at this stage to West Germany in 1990 and Croatia in 2018, and also fell in the European Championship finals of 2021 (on penalties to Italy) and 2024 (to Spain). “It’s been an extremely successful era of our national team,” said Bayern Munich striker Kane. “Of course, we want to get over the line. That is the missing piece now. We’re knocking on the door. We’re getting to these semi-finals and finals. It’s a big week. “We’ve been together six weeks and shown every bit of desire for the badge and we’re going to need an even bigger push now for the last week or so. Ultimately we are in a semi-final of the World Cup and that has not always been the case for this national team, so we have to enjoy it.”