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• Rooney rates Kane as England's greatest striker after seeing goal record beaten

  Wayne Rooney believes Harry Kane deserves to be viewed as the greatest forward in England's history after the captain became his country's all-time leading goalscorer.

  Kane scored his 54th international goal as England began their Euro 2024 qualification campaign with a 2-1 win over Italy on Thursday, the penalty taking him past Rooney's total of 53.

  The total for Kane includes a record 12 England goals at major tournaments (World Cup/European Championship), while he overtook Jimmy Greaves to become Tottenham's all-time leading scorer last month.

  Writing in The Times on Friday, DC United manager Rooney backed Kane to set a difficult target for future England strikers to reach, comparing his hunger for goals to that of Robert Lewandowski.

  "When I broke the England goalscoring record with a penalty against Switzerland in September 2015, Harry Kane was the first player to run over and celebrate with me," Rooney wrote.

  "Even then, with only four caps under his belt, I knew he could become England’s greatest scorer if he kept going the way he was and I wanted to give him encouragement.

  "I believe that when he stops playing he will leave the England record in a place where it will be very difficult for someone else to break it.

   

  "He wants to be like Poland's Robert Lewandowski, a goal machine who is still at the very top in his mid-thirties, and he has it in him to make that happen. I think Harry will finish with an England goals total well into the seventies."

  Rooney also compared Kane's playing style to that of Roma legend Francesco Totti, approving his talent for delivering passes to unlock defences.

  While Kane is yet to inspire Gareth Southgate's team to major tournament glory, Rooney believes the 29-year-old already has a more impressive legacy than any other England forward. 

  "Where does he stand among England strikers? He is probably the best," Rooney added. "I was not an out-and-out number nine and if you look at the great England strikers – Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, Jimmy Greaves, Michael Owen – Harry is as good a scorer as any of them and just as relentless, but unlike them he is not only a finisher.

  "His all-round football qualities make him the best, and that is not just what he does in an England shirt, but at club level. He will break Shearer's Premier League goals record if he stays fit."

• Southgate lauds 'extraordinary' England record-breaker Kane

  Gareth Southgate felt the "extraordinary" Harry Kane showed his "mental strength" by scoring a record-breaking goal in England's 2-1 Euro 2024 qualifying win against Italy.

  The Three Lions gained a measure of revenge for their loss to the Azzurri in the final of the last European Championship at Wembley with a victory in their Group C opener at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

  Declan Rice opened the scoring and Kane become England's outright leading goalscorer with a penalty at the end of the first half in Naples on Thursday.

  A debut goal for the Argentina-born Mateo Retegui in the second half and Luke Shaw's late red card could not prevent England from securing a first away win over Italy since May 1961.

  It was a special night for Kane, who broke a record he shared with Wayne Rooney by scoring his 54th goal for England.

  A commanding first-half display enabled Southgate to become the third England manager to celebrate 50 victories in charge of the national team after Alf Ramsey (69) and Walter Winterbottom (78).

  Southgate hailed his captain, who stepped up to make history in the Three Lions' first game since he crucially missed a spot-kick in a World Cup quarter-final defeat to France in December.

  He said: "Kane was extraordinary. Breaking the record in these conditions demonstrates all the mental strength he has.

  "It's truly an exceptional achievement; the players cheered for him and this is a reaction both to the record and what he had to go through in Qatar."

  England were a cut above Italy in the first half, but it was a different story after the break and Southgate felt they made life difficult for themselves following such an impressive start.

  "We had an exceptional first half, while it was a very tough second half," he said. "We showed two different faces; we controlled the game very well in the first half as soon as we escaped the first line of pressing and at the interval it might have been 3-0.

  "At the beginning of the second half we made some wrong decisions and the momentum changed."

• Mancini hopeful Italy can tackle 'uphill climb' to Euro 2024 following England defeat

  Roberto Mancini knows Italy face an "uphill climb" to qualify for Euro 2024 after they were beaten 2-1 by England but took heart from their second-half display.

  Declan Rice opened the scoring and Harry Kane become England's outright record goalscorer with his 54th strike for his country from the penalty spot just before half-time in Thursday's Group C opener at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

  Argentina-born Mateo Retegui marked his debut with a goal to get the European champions back in the game and there was further hope for Italy when Luke Shaw was sent off in the 80th minute.

  England held on to gain a measure of revenge for a defeat in the Euro 2020 final, securing their first away win over Italy since May 1961.

  Gareth Southgate's side ended Italy's run of 40 European Championship qualifying matches without defeat, leaving the holders with work to do in order to return to a major tournament in Germany next year after missing out on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

  Azzurri head coach Mancini said: "We knew it was going to be a difficult game, then we conceded two goals from two set-pieces; we should have been more careful. 

  "We dominated in the second half and probably deserved a draw. We're disappointed with the result but we still have a long way to go."

  He added: "In the second half we managed to press better, higher and I saw a great team again: this gives us hope. England are always dangerous from set-pieces, but we shouldn't have conceded those two goals.

  "We still managed to roll up our sleeves and play better. The road is a bit of an uphill climb now, but maybe it will finish more smoothly."

  Mancini was encouraged by the impact Retegui made in the second half in Naples after the striker became the first player to open his Italy account while playing for a club based outside of Europe.

  "Retegui has yet to get to know his team-mates and our movements as a team," Mancini said of the Tigre forward.

  "In the first half, he had difficulties against the English defenders who are very strong physically, but he did better in the second half. He's young and I think he just needs a little time."