England captain Harry Kane hailed Cristiano Ronaldo as the benchmark for players in their thirties looking to extend their careers.
The 39-year-old Ronaldo scored his 900th career goal on Thursday as Portugal beat Croatia 2-1 in their Group A Uefa Nations League opener – a number unlikely to be matched anytime soon.
Kane, 31, endured a difficult Euro 2024 campaign, despite scoring three goals as England reached the final, losing to Spain 1-0.
His lethargic performances had critics questioning on whether Kane was struggling under the physical demands of being talisman for both club and country, but the Bayern Munich man says he is keen to take a leaf out of Ronaldo's book.
“Cristiano is the benchmark, not only being one of the best footballers ever to play, but also the benchmark of how long you can play for at a higher level," Kane said ahead of England's Group 2 Nations League match against Republic of Ireland.
“I think sometimes in football and maybe in sport in general, there’s a perception that when you get to your thirties it’s time to start slowing down, playing fewer games and not playing to the high level.
“But like I’ve touched on before, the Ronaldos, the [Lionel] Messis, the [Karim] Benzemas, [Robert] Lewandowskis, all these guys who have had incredible careers in their thirties and almost upped their level as they got into mid-thirties and really reaching their peak.
“Cristiano is just showing that every week, every time he plays, every time he scores, so from my point of view, that’s the aim; I want to play as long as possible for England, and I want to play as long as possible in football and it’s great to see other athletes doing it in front of me. It shows that it’s possible, and it’s just about how you feel yourself.
“I feel in a really good place, both physically and mentally and whatever noise there is around – I’m sure there will be noise around me, like there was around Cristiano, and still is around Cristiano – but as long as you keep performing and keep doing what you know you can, that’s all you can do.”
Ronaldo scores 900th goal
Kane, who is in line to win his 99th cap against Ireland on Saturday evening, struggled to make the impact he had done in previous tournaments in Germany this summer, while others too were unable to replicate their best form, leading to questions about burn-out.
While acknowledging the physical demands of ever-longer seasons – likely to be exacerbated by the 2025 Club World Cup – the former Tottenham striker admits the increasing pressure is something players simply have to get used to.
He said: “There was a lot of talk during the Euros about me and my condition, but like I said then, I felt in good shape.
“Did the games go the way I wanted? No. Not really. But there were a lot of us who felt below par in terms of individual performances and we did extremely well to get to where we got to, which was down to our team spirit and cohesion we created over the years.
“But sometimes when it does not go the way you wanted it to go, there is always something to look for and someone to blame. But I feel good, I have come back in a good place and I have started the season well.”
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
MATCH STATS
Wolves 0
Aston Villa 1 (El Ghazi 90 4' pen)
Red cards: Joao Moutinho (Wolves); Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa)
Man of the match: Emi Martinez (Aston Villa)
A%20QUIET%20PLACE
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ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Episode list:
Ep1: A recovery like no other- the unevenness of the economic recovery
Ep2: PCR and jobs - the future of work - new trends and challenges
Ep3: The recovery and global trade disruptions - globalisation post-pandemic
Ep4: Inflation- services and goods - debt risks
Ep5: Travel and tourism
if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct to Kolkata from Dh1,504 and Dh1,450 return including taxes, respectively. The flight takes four hours 30 minutes outbound and 5 hours 30 minute returning.
The trains
Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.
The hotels
Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.
The biog
Name: Shamsa Hassan Safar
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Degree in emergency medical services at Higher Colleges of Technology
Favourite book: Between two hearts- Arabic novels
Favourite music: Mohammed Abdu and modern Arabic songs
Favourite way to spend time off: Family visits and spending time with friends
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
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Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
