Kane: Stuttered run-up was deliberate to draw keeper off line

Harry Kane has revealed that his stuttered run-up before England's opening penalty against Croatia was a calculated tactic to draw goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic off his line. The Bayern Munich striker scored at the second attempt after VAR intervened, helping England secure a 4-2 victory in their World Cup opener.

VAR intervention and retaken penalty

The penalty was awarded after Luka Modric fouled Noni Madueke. Kane stepped up and saw his initial effort saved by Livakovic, but VAR ordered a retake because the goalkeeper had moved off his line before the kick was taken. Replays showed Livakovic's foot was not on or above the line when Kane struck the ball, a requirement under the laws of the game.

Additionally, Croatia defender Josko Gvardiol had entered the penalty area before the kick and cleared the rebound, preventing Madueke from shooting. This also mandated a retake, as the defender impacted an opposition attacker.

Kane's tactical approach

Speaking to BBC Sport, Kane explained his strategy: "When I watched the clips I saw he likes to move early, so I knew that there was a chance that if I did the stutter that he would come off the line. I was 80% sure that it was off the line, I wasn't 100% sure, then obviously when it got retaken I changed the technique a little bit. This is all why I do the research, and in the end it worked out nicely for me."

Kane's second attempt was more decisive, placing the ball closer to the corner. The England captain has a history of retaken penalties; earlier this season, he had a similar penalty saved for Bayern Munich in the Champions League against Atalanta, where he also noted the goalkeeper's tendency to come off his line.

Expert analysis

Former England defender Conor Coady praised Kane's penalty-taking intelligence: "He can take any sort of penalty. He is that good at penalties. That is really clever if that is something he is thinking of, if he is watching other keepers and how they move and what they do, that is a really clever thing to do. He must've practiced, he's obviously looked at the keeper."

Former England and Tottenham goalkeeper Paul Robinson added: "It has worked for him. The goalkeeper has come off his line but the interesting thing is he stuck to that technique for the next one. I have seen him do it this season before and I think his confidence and where he's at at the moment, you can't question him. The actual strike of the penalty was too close to the goalkeeper. Even if the goalkeeper hadn't tried to seek the advantage he would have still saved it. You look at the way he learned from the first penalty, was brave enough to go the same way and this one was much closer to the corner. He'll have practised many penalties going into this tournament."