Joe Cole has heaped praise on Declan Rice following England's win over Italy while acknowledging that Harry Kane will steal the limelight. The Tottenham striker doubled his country's lead just moments before half-time, overtaking Wayne Rooney as the Three Lions' all-time top goalscorer.
While the vast majority of pundits and fans were quick to give Kane his flowers, and rightfully so, Cole hailed the West Ham captain as the 'best player on the pitch by a mile'. Rice has been subject to criticism from Graeme Souness and Roy Keane recently for his inability to score as many goals as a world-class midfielder should.
Eager to respond to his critics, the Arsenal and Chelsea target handed England the lead against Italy inside the opening quarter of an hour. Speaking on Channel Four, Cole said: "He was magnificent tonight, best player on the pitch by a mile.
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"He took his goal well, terrible defending from the Italians who let Harry Kane drift to that far post, get his shot off, and Dec’s just alive to it. If that’s a centre forward doing that we’re talking about instinct and natural ability, he keeps it down, good connection into the ground and it’s enough.
"He was outstanding from start to finish tonight," the former Blues midfielder added. "He really was, and it might get lost because obviously Harry Kane’s the story, but he was brilliant."
With the help of Rice and Kane, England have kickstarted their UEFA Euro 2024 Qualifying campaign with three points on the board in Group C. The Three Lions are set to welcome Ukraine to Wembley on Sunday afternoon as they look to extend their winning streak after heartbreak at the World Cup in December.
"For everyone, you know, the World Cup was a difficult way to end," Kane said. "It was tough to finish in that way but we spoke this week about getting back to it.
"We feel like we’re one of the best teams in Europe and we just have to keep knocking on the door. We’re getting close but coming here, putting in a performance like that today, just shows we’re ready for the next challenge. We’ve got a difficult campaign ahead but hopefully we can get ready for next year."
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