Keane Slams Kane's "Madness" in New Zealand Victory as Tuchel Eyes World Cup Focus

Harry Kane's solitary strike proved sufficient to see England past New Zealand in a forgettable pre-tournament friendly, but Roy Keane has wasted no time in taking the Bayern Munich striker to task over his positioning during the contest.

Kane, who has enjoyed a phenomenal Bundesliga campaign with 61 goals in 51 appearances, found himself in the firing line from the Sky Sports pundit for venturing too far back to receive the ball from his own defenders—a habit Keane insists Thomas Tuchel will want stamped out before the tournament kicks off.

"There was no need for it," Keane explained, picking apart Kane's decision-making. "Yes, you understand the appeal of dropping deep when you've got his range of distribution, but not when you're collecting it from the back four. That's where it becomes problematic."

The former Manchester United captain elaborated on why such tendencies could prove costly in knockout football. "Imagine being a defender and watching Kane drift back to pick it up off you—you're laughing," he reasoned. "The damage he does arrives further upfield. Going back that far, gathering possession from centre-backs? That's ridiculous. The manager certainly won't be having it once the serious business begins."

Keane stressed that Kane's pedigree should preclude such indulgences. "He's the best in the world right now. He doesn't need to be spraying balls from deep. There's plenty of others capable of that. Get yourself up there where you do the real harm. If England are to win this thing, he's the key man—he's got to be switched on."

Tuchel's own assessment of the New Zealand outing suggested a manager keen to tighten the screws ahead of the Croatia clash on June 17. The England boss acknowledged improvement as the match wore on but expressed reservations about his side's opening period.

"The second half was considerably better," Tuchel reflected. "We showed more intensity, more aggression both in and out of possession. We created chances, got into the box with purpose. We were sharper, more structured. In the first half, though, there was too much winging it—too much improvisation. That disrupted our rhythm and made it harder to press effectively because we weren't where we needed to be."

The manager contextualised the performance against the challenges of preparation. "Look, we've only had four training sessions together, and many of these lads haven't played as a unit since November—that's half a year ago," he noted. "We've completely reshuffled things to give everyone minutes in combinations and formations they've never tried before. Factor in the pitch conditions, and you get something that doesn't always look pretty."