Harry Kane is squarely focused on captaining England to Euro 2024 glory next summer – and he admits that facing hosts Germany, where he now plays his club football for Bayern Munich, could make for an interesting encounter along the way.
The two old rivals were kept apart in Saturday's group-stage draw – but there's always the possibility of a knockout meeting, just as there was at the previous Euros, where Kane scored as the Three Lions beat the Germans 2-0 in the last 16 at Wembley.
Bayern's number nine isn't overly preoccupied with the thought of a repeat tie, however, as he tells FourFourTwo in an exclusive interview for our December issue.
"Whether we have to play the Germans or not, the focus is to try to win the European Championship," Kane says. "So, we'll have to wait and see if that happens. When you're playing against club teammates, it's always a bit of a strange game – but it's something I've got used to more over the years, playing international football."
Naturally, now being a Bayern player following his £86m summer move from Tottenham, Kane will be very familiar with many members of the German national squad, such as Manuel Neuer, Leroy Sane and new friend Thomas Muller – although he tells us, jovially, that he hasn't discussed another potential England vs Germany clash with the latter: "No, I haven't felt like bringing that one up!"
If such an occasion does materialise, though, Kane is fully aware of just how tough a test it could be for Gareth Southgate's side – who finished as Euro runners-up to Italy two years ago.
"Germany are still one of the best teams in Europe," he insists, despite their crashing out at the group stage of the 2022 World Cup. "The Euros will be tough, whether or not we end up facing the hosts – but we've played them before and we know we can expect them to refocus and challenge for the trophy."
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