Somehow, the amount of goals Pelé scored in his career has been hotly debated for a while now. Did this goal count? Did it happen in a friendly? Has he reached 1000 goals? Has he not? But, generally, it is accepted
that the Brazilian maestro scored 77 goals in 92 games for the Selecão.
Harry Kane has now surpassed that international tally. With England already qualified and playing a dead rubber match against Albania, it was Harry Kane who fought to not only break the deadlock late but seal the game with his two goals. That took him 78 international goals. Sure, it took him 112 matches to do this and his goal to game ratio is not nearly as good as Pelé’s but it is still a remarkable achievement. Besides, as England manager Thomas Tuchel highlighted after the match, the focus deserves to be on Kane’s unbelievable work ethic even in such dead rubber matches:
“This [surpassing Pelé] is the cherry on top. The investment from Harry in these matches is outstanding. He is so invested in everything we do,” the former Borussia Dortmund manager praised, as captured by @iMiaSanMia. “He’s the same for Bayern Munich. He’s in a mindset and physical condition that is at the highest level. He produces goal after goal for us. The way he works, tracks back, finds solutions in offensive play is outstanding.”
Hey, sometimes even Tuchel is right.
