The England squad that I took to Germany for the 2006 World Cup is called the ‘Golden Generation’. We had some great players, but I think that today’s England squad is better. We had a brilliant starting XI in 2006 – Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Michael Owen, David Beckham, John Terry and Rio Ferdinand – but the group has more options now. Gareth Southgate can play Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling or Jack Grealish. He has no major injuries to deal with: in 2002, I lost Beckham; in 2004 I had no Owen; and in 2006, Rooney wasn’t 100 per cent fit.
If I could choose one player from the current England team to have had in 2006, though, it would be Harry Kane. He’s a fighter. Against Iran, he didn’t score, but he created for his teammates. He is an astonishing player. I’ve never seen England start a World Cup better than they did on Monday.
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