'Shocked' Harry Kane responds to being dropped by England ahead of Thomas Tuchel arrival

Harry Kane concedes he was shocked to be dropped for England's win in Greece just days ago.

The Three Lions skipper was a surprise exclusion during the week as the nation secured revenge by seeing off the Greeks in Athens - just weeks after they'd won at Wembley. Kane has largely been an ever present but was overlooked with Ollie Watkins getting the nod in the frontline.

The Bayern Munich man has continued to be prolific so his form was hardly an issue, but Lee Carsley chose to shuffle his pack in his final international window. Watkins needed just seven minutes to open the scoring for England when given his opportunity.

Kane concedes initially he was stunned when informed of his spot on the bench, but was keen to ensure he embraced his change in role and he made sure the team was perfectly prepared.

He said: “It was probably a little bit of a shock. It was about getting my head around it. But I wasn’t down about it. I wasn’t worried about it. I understood where Lee was coming from and I think that’s part and parcel of being captain. I’ve made it clear that I want to start every game.

"But being a leader, you sometimes have to take things in your stride and say ‘ok, I am ready to help the team."

Carsley will soon return to take charge of the U21s when his interim spell ends. Thomas Tuchel will begin work imminently and Watkins, who is seen as Kane's understudy, was given the chance to begin from the start and show his leadership qualities without having Kane alongside him.

"It was important to give Ollie Watkins an opportunity,” Carsley told ITV on his decision. “To experience a night like this will be great for himself. This team needs to try and create leaders and one way to do that is give them opportunities."

Image: AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images)

Kane himself has been outspoken this week about the number of players who've chosen to withdraw from England duty - many of them citing injuries - with the skipper adamant that country should come before club.

"I think England comes before anything. England comes before club," Kane said. "England is the most important thing you play as a professional footballer and Gareth [Southgate] was hot on that and he wasn't afraid to make decisions if, you know, that started to drift from certain players."

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