Harry Kane knew his stuttered run-up might draw Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic off his line – and when VAR intervened to hand him a second chance, he changed his technique and scored.
The England captain put his side ahead in their World Cup opener against Croatia, a 4-2 victory in Dallas, but only after the video assistant referee spotted an infringement at the first attempt.
“Harry Kane scored a retaken penalty after VAR ruled Croatia keeper Livakovic off his line in England's 4-2 win.”
Luka Modric fouled Noni Madueke, and Kane stepped up. His initial penalty was saved by Livakovic, but replays showed the goalkeeper had moved fractionally off his line before the ball was struck. The VAR ordered a retake.
“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,” Kane told BBC Sport. “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.”
The retake was also justified by another infringement: Croatia defender Josko Gvardiol had entered the area too early and cleared the rebound, preventing Madueke from shooting. Under the rules, a retake is mandated if a defender inside the area impacts an opponent.
Kane’s preparation echoed a similar incident earlier this season for Bayern Munich against Atalanta in the Champions League, when his stutter also drew a goalkeeper off his line. “I knew that if I stopped, there was a good chance he’d come too far forward,” Kane said of that save.
Former England defender Conor Coady praised the captain’s composure. “He can take any sort of penalty. He is that good at penalties,” Coady told 5 Live. “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.”
England manager Thomas Tuchel, who had urged his players to “go for it” at half-time, saw his side open their campaign with a statement win. Kane’s double, alongside goals from Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford, secured the three points.