Thomas Tuchel has admitted England may never find another Harry Kane, but the Three Lions boss believes Jude Bellingham could offer a different solution at centre-forward.
Kane continues to lead England’s attack at an extraordinary rate, with the 33-year-old Bayern Munich striker showing little sign of slowing down.
The England captain scored 73 goals for club and country last season, form that has placed him firmly among the leading contenders for the Ballon d’Or.
His start to the current campaign has been equally impressive.
Kane endured frustration against Spain after missing a costly penalty in England’s 3-2 defeat, but responded in emphatic fashion by scoring during the 2-0 Nations League victory over Czechia.
That goal took his England tally to 87, leaving him just 13 goals short of the remarkable 100-goal milestone.
Tuchel believes Kane’s consistency and finishing ability make replacing him an almost impossible task.
“The highest level of goalscorer, of finishing,” the England boss said of Kane, who can equal Peter Shilton’s 125-cap appearance record at home to Czechia next week if he plays in Croatia on Saturday.
“He is the first one to push everyone and that is his mindset and he became a very, very hardworking forward on top of his finishing skills. He is a complete package.”
Kane’s dominance has also highlighted a long-standing problem for England: finding a reliable long-term successor.
Ollie Watkins and Ivan Toney have previously provided cover at major tournaments, but both forwards are now in their thirties and were left out of the latest Nations League squad.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin, 29, has been selected by Tuchel this time, while Liam Delap remains one of the younger English options capable of leading the line.
However, Tuchel is not looking for another player to simply replicate Kane’s role.
“You will not get another Harry Kane, first of all.
“We look for different options and solutions. We finished the game with Jude [Bellingham] up front as a number nine.
“There will be someone else, but it will not be Harry or a copy of Harry. We will find a solution when it comes to it but maybe not me. It might be another 10 years.”
That solution could involve Bellingham.
The Real Madrid midfielder was pushed further forward after replacing Kane in Prague, giving Tuchel another attacking option while allowing England to maintain an attacking threat through the middle.
“I like him as a nine,” Tuchel said. “Then he can contribute to both sides and overload the sides and doesn’t affect so much of the balance.
“We found a bit of a new role for him in the last match, as a central 10, so he can go to both sides and it is more of a 4-2-3-1 than a 4-3-3 to have Harry and Jude closer together and to give them a chance to overload both sides. We are working on that.
“Jude in general should always be able to go through the last line and should always be able to end up in the box.
“He is a natural goalscorer and he has the hunger to be on the scoreboard. He wants to be there and have the decisive action, so it makes not a huge difference if he plays as a nine or a 10.”
Tuchel’s comments underline the flexibility he wants from Bellingham as England continue to develop their attacking options around Kane.
Rather than searching for a direct replacement for their record scorer, the England manager appears open to building a different attacking structure when the time eventually comes.
For now, Kane remains the focal point. But with Bellingham capable of operating as a No. 9 or No. 10, England may already have one possible answer to the question of what comes next.
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