Image source, Getty Images. By. Phil McNulty. Chief football writer at Wembley. 8 hours ago. 1117 Comments. Thomas Tuchel and his England team had a taste of what life would be like without Harry Kane as they slumped to a deserved defeat against Japan at Wembley.. On the evidence of this grim spectacle, the presence of the 32-year-old captain and record goalscorer will be the difference between failure and any chance of English success at this summer’s World Cup.. Kane was absent from the team list against Japan after suffering “a minor issue in training”. He was at Wembley but afforded the night off.. For now, the words “minor issue” are enough to send shudders through England and their followers because the evidence of these 90 minutes tells us that to lose Kane for a game of greater consequence would be a major issue.. Kane’s importance simply cannot be overestimated.. Should any misfortune befall England’s only world-class striker – perhaps their only high-class striker – in the 78 days between this game and their World Cup opener against Croatia in Arlington on 17 June, that could spell serious trouble.. Kane did not figure in either the draw against Uruguay or this loss to an impressive Japan, who sit 18th in the Fifa rankings, some 14 places below high-flying England.. Without him, England lacked punch, creativity and cutting edge.. Even head coach Tuchel appears to be struggling to find a solution should Kane be unavailable during the World Cup. Quite simply, it is not even worth contemplating from England’s viewpoint.. England’s threat, without Kane, falls off a cliff.. This is surely not news to Tuchel, but he will have everything crossed that the Bayern Munich striker is fit and well in June.. Alternatives have had try-outs during this camp, but recognised number nines in Dominic Solanke and Dominic Calvert-Lewin did not make their case strongly enough.. And the experiment of using Manchester City’s Phil Foden as a false nine looked exactly that against Japan, Tuchel perhaps recognising it was not delivering desired results as it was abandoned inside an hour when he sent on an orthodox striker in Solanke.. Foden was tireless, but this was England’s equivalent of an ill-fitting square peg in a round hole. It was a desperate measure, through no fault of Foden’s, that should now be forgotten.. England beaten by Japan in final match before World Cup squad named. Who is a certain starter at the World Cup? How England’s players rated. 10 hours ago. Three top-20 teams played, no wins. Should Tuchel be concerned?. 7 hours ago. Image source, Getty Images. In even more desperation, as England tried to offer some belated threat, the bankruptcy of ideas was such that it was back to lumping long balls to substitute Harry Maguire in the hope physical force and height might disrupt a composed Japanese defence.. It was ugly, basic – on this occasion unsuccessful, although Maguire did have a header cleared off the line by Yukinari Sugawara in a rare mo
