World Cup 2026 by the numbers: Harry Kane versus England's greatest No. 9s

England captain Harry Kane, who is having his career-best season so far in terms of goals scored, held England by the scruff of their neck in the round of 32 match against DR Congo and took the team to the round of 16 with two goals in the second half.He has now scored 72 goals so far this season, 10 behind Messi's career-best 82 goals in the 2011-12 season.Harry Kane is now not only the leading scorer in England history, but also the Three Lions' most prolific scorer in the FIFA World Cup, having surpassed Gary Linekar's count of 10 goals in the tournament.When talking about his exploits, it is also interesting to note how he has performed when compared to other legendary English strikers like Lineker, Wayne Rooney, Alan Shearer and others.Here we take a look:The table makes it clear how Kane has dominated in the England jersey compared to his predecessors. While he is miles ahead in terms of the others when it comes to goals scored in England colours (84, second-highest being Rooney with 53 goals), he has achieved the same in lesser number of matches than Rooney.Kane's two strikes against DR Congo also sent him one place above Lineker when it comes to the number of goals scored in the knock out rounds of the World Cup.

While Lineker has six goals to his name, Kane has now registered seven.However, Kane's percentage of goals in knockout matches (53.80%) falls short of Lineker's 60% rate. While Kane has played in 18 matches at the competition so far, Lineker played in 12.Wayne Rooney, on the other hand, did not score a single goal in the knockout stages of the World Cup for England throughout his career.Surprisingly, Alan Shearer, who still holds the record for the most goals in Premier League history, did not have an international career to match his exploits at club level. Shearer has only two World Cup goals to his name, which came in four matches he has played at the tournament for the Three Lions.Michael Owen, who shot to fame with his sensational solo goal against Argentina, was also not able to sustain his form in his remaining stint at the tournament, scoring only on three more occasions.The stats clearly show how Harry Kane is the best striker England has seen till date, and if he continues to remain in this blistering form, the Three Lions can go quite far this time around.England's Round of 16England will face Mexico in the round of 16 on Monday, 6 July, at 5:30 am. The winner of the match will face the winner of the Brazil vs Norway fixture.