Recently, former England manager Gareth Southgate spoke about Harry Kane's penalty kick ahead of the release of his upcoming book.
Southgate on Kane:
“If you've read the interview with Harry Kane, you'll gain insight into the motivations of an elite player.”
“First, an inner desire for mastery. Second, curiosity and a willingness to learn.”
“Harry has been one of the best penalty takers in the world for years—with a success rate of around 85%. He would decide where to take the penalty a few days before a match and practice it deliberately in training.
“Until he missed his second penalty against France in 2022, everyone thought he had mastered the skill. Having experienced such a huge disappointment—as he himself said, it was ‘the worst moment I’ve ever experienced’—it was my responsibility as his coach to support and guide Harry.”
“He had similar experiences before, which perhaps allowed him to see things more objectively. But any coach's conversation requires the player to think and decide how to respond. When we met next time, Harry had already taken action.”
“He told me that he wasn't relying on his tried-and-tested methods, but rather had been studying and practicing a technique that ‘relies on the goalkeeper.’”
“He told me that he wasn't relying on his tried-and-tested methods, but rather on a technique that ‘relies on the goalkeeper.’” “Basically, it's about waiting for the goalkeeper to react first, and then adjusting the shooting angle accordingly.”
“He's now prepared to use either of his two techniques, giving the goalkeeper even less chance to ‘guess.’ In the next game, when England were awarded a penalty, I've never been so certain someone would score. What I didn't expect was that he only missed one of his next 38 penalties – a 97% success rate. It's a lesson in self-control that anyone can learn.”
Southgate left his position as England manager after England's defeat to Spain in Euro 2024 in Berlin and has not returned to coaching since.