Gareth Southgate praised Harry Kane for his quality, mentality and professionalism after becoming England’s all-time top scorer in Thursday’s 2-1 win at reigning European champions Italy.
The 29-year-old equalled Wayne Rooney’s 53-goal national record haul by scoring from the spot in their World Cup quarter-final against France in Qatar just 103 days ago.
But that night is best remembered for Kane missing his second spot-kick in a disappointing last-eight exit, making his historic strike in Thursday’s European qualifier in Naples all the sweeter.
Declan Rice scored before the skipper lashed home a penalty to become the first man to score 54 goals for England, who held on for a 2-1 win after Mateo Retegui’s goal and a late Luke Shaw red card.
“Well, firstly his overall performance tonight was outstanding,” England boss Southgate said of record-breaking Kane. “I thought he really dominated the centre-backs, his link play was really good.
“You could see right from the beginning of the game he was really on it.
“To break the record in the manner he did given the recent history was an indication of his strength of character and his mentality.
“I couldn’t be happier for him and his family. They’re lovely people.
“He is a brilliant professional and to do it as quickly as he has with still a lot of his career to come is an incredible achievement.
“Huge credit to him. The players gave him a brilliant reception afterwards and I think that was a response to both the record and what he’s just had to recover from as well.”
Kane addressed the players after the match, with Southgate saying players and staff recognised “this was a very special moment and a historic moment.”
The England boss said “he deserves every bit of praise he’s going to get” after a memorable night at the dilapidated Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
England’s first away win in Italy since 1961 was the ideal start to European qualification, with the Group C triumph seeing Southgate become just the third manager to oversee 50 victories.
“We showed two sides without a doubt,” Southgate said. “We had great control from the back in the first half and whenever we broke through that first line of pressure we looked really dangerous.
“And, frankly, we should have had the game buried. It should have been 3-0 at half-time.
“If you start any half of football the way we started the second, you’re going to be in trouble and we concede a really poor goal. Several errors in the lead up to it, decisions.
“And then of course, the emotion of the whole evening changes.
“You are giving the crowd a lift, you are giving the opposition a lift. You have got to deal with momentum.
“We then have to deal with going down to 10 but actually I think we found a way we could be as compact as we could with extra energy to deal with that.
“So, yeah, in the end they can reference something they have had to grind and dig in away from home, which is hugely important and given our record here is a massive result.
“But equally, we would prefer more of the first half than the second!”
Italy v England ratings
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ITALY RATINGS: Gianluigi Donnarumma - 6. Displayed excellent reflexes to tip a Bellingham shot over the bar in the 12th minute. Had next to nothing to do in the second half. AFP -
Giovanni Di Lorenzo - 4. Carelessly handled the ball while challenging Kane to give the Three Lions a penalty. Reuters -
Leonardo Spinazzola - 5. Endured a torrid first half against the in-form Bukayo Saka. Had very little defensive work to do in the second half but got forward well to support in attack. Getty Images -
Rafael Toloi - 5 Gave Rice too much space to get a shot off and give England the lead in the 13th minute. Looked more solid after that early gaffe. Getty Images -
Francesco Acerbi - 6. A quiet game for Acerbi in the middle of Italy's backline. Stuck to his job well and had a half chance to draw Italy level in the second half. EPA -
Nicolo Barella - 6. His combative spirit saw him get into a number of scuffles in the first half. A tireless runner, but he lacked that bit of quality to provide the final pass to breach England’s backline. AP -
Jorginho - 5. Worked hard at the base of Italy’s midfield but got overrun by England's more athletic midfielders in the first half. Improved in the second half. AFP -
Marco Verrati - 7. Played a brilliant pass to find Pellegrini in the box early in the second half. Helped Italy win the midfield battle after the break. EPA -
Domenico Berardi - 5. Struggled against Shaw and failed to provide much of a threat to Pickford’s goal. Getty Images -
Lorenzo Pellegrini - 7. Delivered two dangerous corners to cause panic in the England penalty area at the beginning of the second half. Found Rategui with a disguised pass to bring the Azzurri back into the game. Getty Images -
Mateo Retegui - 8. Should have at least tested Pickford from a corner in the sixth minute. Capped off his debut with a side-footed finish into the bottom corner to bring Italy back into the game. EPA -
SUBS: Matteo Politano (Berardi, 62) - 6. Almost got on the end of a Gnonto cross in the 77th minute. Getty Images -
Bryan Cristante (Barrela, 62) - 6. Worked hard after coming on but couldn't help Italy grab the equaliser. Getty Images -
Wilfred Gnonto (Pellegrini, 69) - 7. Came on and caused a lot of problems for England on the right-hand side. Getty Images -
Sandro Tonali (Jorginho, 69) - 6. Denied by a Stones block in the 75th minute. Added an extra body to the Azzurri midfield to help the dominate the game in the second half. Getty Images -
ENGLAND RATINGS: Jordan Pickford - 6. Displayed his sweeper-keeper role to deny Berardi in the 30th minute. Made two decent saves to deny Italy an equaliser. Getty Images -
Kyle Walker - 6. Had a good game against Pellegrini in the first half but really struggled against the more tricky Gnonto as Italy piled on the pressure in search of an equaliser. Getty Images -
Luke Shaw - 5. Defended and attacked well in the first half. Picked up a first yellow card for time wasting in the 78th minute and just a minute later, picked up a second booking for a foul. EPA -
Harry Maguire - 4. At fault for Italy’s first goal as he made a misplaced pass, needlessly jumped in to foul Barella whilst trying to recover the ball, and left Rategui in acres of space to bring the Azzurri back into the game. Looked shaky as the Italy piled on the pressure. Getty Images -
John Stones - 7. Made a good last-man block to deny Retegui in the 39th minute. Made a number of last-ditch blocks to deny Italy in the second half and looked like the more assured defender next to Maguire. AFP -
Declan Rice - 9. Had a very busy start to the game with Italy applying early pressure. Gave England the lead with a close-range left-footed finish in the 13th minute. Made a well-timed sliding challenge to stop Barella at the edge of the box in the 27th minute. AP Photo -
Jude Bellingham - 6. Tested Donnarumma with a rasping shot in the 12th minute. Enjoyed a lively first half but struggled to get involved in the second. Getty Images -
Kalvin Philips - 6. Had a chance to play Kane through on goal but chose to shoot and hit his shot wide in the 32nd minute. Provided good cover for the Three Lions backline next to Rice. AP Photo -
Jack Grealish - 5. Inexplicably missed an open goal when Kane found him with a low cross in the 46th minute. Failed to really get into the game in the second half. Getty Images -
Bukayo Saka - 7. Had England's first shot on target with a tame shot in the eighth minute. Was a thorn in the flesh of Spinazzola all through the game. AP Photo -
Harry Kane - 8. His blocked shot from close range ricochetted into the path of Rice to give England the lead. Became England’s top scorer from the penalty spot on the stroke of half-time. Getty Images -
SUBS: Phil Foden (Grealish, 69) - N/A. Surprisingly subbed off early in the 81st minute due to a red card to Shaw. Getty Images -
Kieran Trippier (Foden, 81) - N/A. Came on to try and help England close out the game with 10 men. EPA -
Reece James (Saka, 85) - N/A. A solid short cameo as Southgate looked to hold on for the win. Getty Images -
Conor Gallagher (Bellingham, 85) - N/A. Wonderful cameo. Was everywhere, breaking up play, tidying up. Getty Images
As for Italy, manager Roberto Mancini praised “complete striker” Kane for his goal on a frustrating night for his side in Naples.
“We knew it was going to be a difficult game, then we conceded two goals from two set pieces,” the former Manchester City boss said. “We should have been more careful.
“We dominated in the second half and probably deserved a draw.
“We’re disappointed with the result but we still have a long way to go.
“In the second half we managed to press better, higher and I saw a great team again: this gives us hope.
“England are always dangerous from set pieces but we shouldn’t have conceded those two goals. We still managed to roll up our sleeves and play better.
“The road is a bit of an uphill climb now, but maybe it will finish more smoothly.”
