Tottenham Hotspur striker and England captain Harry Kane addressed his penalty miss against France in the FIFA World Cup quarterfinal last month.
"After it [the penalty miss] happened, I just wanted to play again as quick as possible and get it out of my head," Kane admitted while speaking with Dan Kilpatrick of the Evening Standard. "It’s something you have to deal with. I’ll probably remember it for the rest of my life, but that’s part of the game. It’s not going to affect me as a player or as a person."
England trailed France 2-1 when Kane stepped up to the spot in the 84th minute of the quarterfinal knockout clash. He was unable to test goalkeeper and Tottenham teammate Hugo Lloris, though, as his right-footed attempt sailed over the bar:
HARRY KANE MISSES THE PENALTY pic.twitter.com/UwDpI8qXpQ
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 10, 2022
France held on for the 2-1 win that bounced the Three Lions from the tournament.
Tottenham resumed the Premier League season following the World Cup break with a match at Brentford on Dec. 26. Brentford fans directed chants of "you let your country down" toward Kane during the contest, but he enjoyed somewhat of a last laugh by hitting the back of the net to help the visitors earn a 2-2 draw.
More recently, Kane, a three-time Premier League Golden Boot winner, notched a brace in Wednesday's 4-0 thumping of Crystal Palace:
Harry Kane has a brace and is 2️⃣ goals away from 200!
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) January 4, 2023
: @USA_Network #MyPLMorning | #CRYTOT pic.twitter.com/2Ws7uDJfRZ
"It’s never an easy thing to go through, but it’s part of football, part of the highs and lows of our sport," Kane told Kilpatrick about the penalty miss following Wednesday's result. "I had a bit of time away after, just to reflect, and it’s made me even more hungry to come back and be successful."
Kane and Tottenham next face League One side Portsmouth in a third-round FA Cup tie this Saturday.
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