England Captain Kane to Miss Friendly vs Wales with Ankle Injury

Kane out of England vs Wales friendly with ankle injury

England captain Harry Kane will miss Thursday’s friendly against Wales at Wembley due to an ankle injury sustained in Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga win over Eintracht Frankfurt. Manager Thomas Tuchel confirmed the striker trained separately from the squad on Wednesday.

“Harry will miss tomorrow’s game. It was too painful to kick a ball, and too risky to play,” Tuchel told reporters, adding that Kane is expected to be ready for England’s World Cup qualifier against Latvia on October 14.

Kane has been in scintillating form for Bayern Munich this season, scoring 11 goals and providing three assists in the Bundesliga. He is also England’s all-time top scorer, with 74 goals in 109 appearances, and has scored 103 goals in 106 appearances for Bayern since joining in 2023 from Tottenham Hotspur.

Tuchel confirmed that Declan Rice, Jordan Henderson, or John Stones could captain England in Kane’s absence. He also said four changes were made to the starting XI that beat Serbia 5-0 last month.

Wales, who have not beaten England at Wembley since 1977, are preparing for their upcoming World Cup qualifier against Belgium. Wales coach Craig Bellamy emphasized the team’s intent to compete:

“We are not here as tourists. We are here to be the best version of ourselves.”