Harry Kane is better than Pelé. Almost an insult to one of the absolute icons of the world of football and sports, but that's what the numbers say. Which rarely lie. And so, the striker and captain of England, with the latest double scored against Albania in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, has passed O'Reilly for goals scored with his national team: Pelé stopped at 77, Kane took the lead with 78 goals, confirming himself by a wide margin as the best scorer of his national team: "For dedication, commitment, continuity and quality he is simply extraordinary", commented after the match by Thomas Tuchel.
Record for Tuchel and Kane in the challenge against Albania
The objective was declared on the eve of the Tirana transfer, then between said and done, the field. England needed over 70 minutes to find the path to success, in an evening that then celebrated for a double record that has excited British hearts. The 2-0 given to Albania has consecrated the "foreigner" Thomas Tuchel in the history of the Three Lions, the first coach to close a qualifying journey for the World Cup, unscathed and without conceding a single goal in 8 matches played. A primacy achieved precisely thanks to his all-time bomber, Harry Kane, with his double that has also guaranteed him the personal satisfaction of having surpassed a sacred monster of international football, Pelè.
Harry Kane's brace against Albania
With his 77th and 78th international goals in a matter of minutes, Harry Kane has overtaken Pelé for goals scored for his respective national teams, establishing a new record that increasingly crowns him as England's all-time top scorer (Wayne Rooney, second in this particular ranking, is further behind, stuck at 53). It matters little in how many games Kane has achieved this feat, although, in this case, the numbers highlight the ability of Pelé, who managed to score 77 goals in just 92 appearances, while the English striker needed 112 games in total. A testament to another season lived at the pace of goals: now 25 in the season in just 18 appearances between Bayern Munich and the national team.
Tuchel: "For mentality, work, solutions... simply extraordinary"
The decisive goals for England were praised by Tuchel himself, who after the match did not miss the opportunity to praise the team captain: “This is the classic icing on the cake” – said the English coach at the press conference. “Harry’s commitment in these matches has always been extraordinary. He is very dedicated to everything he does and it is the same at Bayern Munich. He has a mentality and a physical condition that is constantly at the highest levels and that is why he scores goal after goal for us. The way he works, how he is dedicated to the team even in the defensive phase, the fact that he always manages to find solutions in attack… simply extraordinary.”