Harry Kane slams Gary Lineker's criticism of England at Euros

Kane also accused Lineker and other former players who’ve been critical, of having short memories, ITV News Sports Editor Steve Scott reports

England captain Harry Kane has fired a ‘show me your medals’ broadside at former players, particularly Gary Lineker, who’ve criticised England’s performances at the Euros so far.

“The bottom line is, we haven't won anything as a nation for a long, long time. And a lot of these players were part of that and know how tough it is.”

In his podcast following England’s draw with Denmark, Lineker, talking to Micah Richards over a glass of red wine, described the Three Lions performance as "sh*t".

When asked about that specifically, Kane appealed to former players to recognise the impact they have.

“I'd never want to be disrespectful to any player, especially a player who's worn the shirt and knows what it's like to play for England, but of course I think what the ex-players or ex-players who are now pundits have got to realise, is that it's very hard not to listen to it.

"Especially for some players who are not used to it or some players who are new to the environment.”

"Building the lads up with confidence would be a much better way of going about it,” Kane said at a press conference on Sunday

Kane wasn’t suggesting everyone has to be a cheerleader but that he would expect more respect from those who’ve been to tournaments with England and consistently failed.

“I always feel like they have a responsibility. I know they have got to be honest and give their opinion, but also, they have a responsibility of being an ex-player, an ex-player who a lot of players look up to. People do care about what they say, people do listen to them.”

Kane also accused Lineker and other former players who’ve been critical, of having short memories.

“Remember what it was like to wear the shirt, their words are listened to and some of the lads hear it," he said.

"We all want to win a major tournament and I'm sure they (the pundits) want us to win a major tournament and being as helpful as they can and building the lads up with confidence would be a much better way of going about it.”

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