Kane: We have to take the positives

Harry Kane felt the manner of England’s performance during the 3-2 UEFA Nations League loss to Spain proved they can compete with the best teams in the world.

The Three Lions were edged out in a thrilling contest at Wembley, where Kane and Anthony Gordon were on target for Thoms Tuchel’s men.

Playing in their first match since the World Cup, England fell behind to Lamine Yamal’s strike in the second minute, but showcased what Kane believes was some of the best football to get back into the contest.

A slick counter-attack was finished off by Gordon to restore parity, before Kane headed the Three Lions in front four minutes later to give them the lead at half-time.

The skipper had the chance to extend their advantage from the penalty spot, but his mis-hit effort crashed back off the crossbar and Spain hit back to win the game with strikes from Alex Baena and Mikel Oyarzabal.

“I think so,” Kane said, when asked if the period immediately before and after half-time set the standard for England’s performances.

“I think I spoke before about how we reached good levels at the World Cup but didn’t quite put a full 90 minutes together.

“It was probably similar again today. We had a lot of good moments, but I think that period was as good as we’ve played in a long, long time. That’s the standard that we know we can reach.

“We’re playing against the reigning world and European champions and we went toe-to-toe with them. On another day, for sure, we’re the ones who win the game.

“So we have to take the positives from it. It’s disappointing now, of course, but we have to dust ourselves down and go again in a few days."

England are back in action on Tuesday 29 September (7.45pm BST), when they face Czechia in their second of four Nations League fixtures during this international window.