HARRY KANE BREAKS SILENCE ON MAN CITY VERDICT — ENGLAND CAPTAIN MAKES CLEAR WHERE HIS FOCUS LIES

Harry Kane has insisted England’s players are keeping their attention firmly on international duty after Manchester City were found guilty of 114 of 115 Premier League financial-rule charges.

Three City players — Marc Guehi, Nico O’Reilly and Elliot Anderson — are part of England’s current squad, meaning the verdict arrived with the issue potentially hanging over the camp.

But Kane says it was barely discussed inside the England dressing room.

‘WE HAVE OUR ENGLAND HEAD ON’

Speaking after England’s 2-0 victory over Czechia, Kane revealed he had not even heard the news until after the match.

“To be honest today I didn’t even know the news literally until after the game,” the England captain said.

“I’ve been off my phone all day.”

Kane was then asked about the potential impact on the three City players.

“I can’t comment on it now,” he said. “I’m sure in the next days it will be spoken about in a casual way.”

But Kane was clear about the immediate priority.

“I always say when we’re here we’re with England. We have our England head on and those guys will deal with it obviously when they are back.”

“From our point of view it is all about Croatia on Saturday.”

TUCHEL TAKES THE SAME APPROACH

England manager Thomas Tuchel has adopted a similar position.

Asked whether he needed to “look after” the City players following the verdict, Tuchel said his attention remained entirely on preparing England.

“I did not actually because I am just focused on everything we have to deal with here and to prepare the team,” he said.

“I did not talk to them about the issue and I will not comment on it.”

Tuchel instead praised Guehi and Anderson for their performances against Czechia.

“I think Marc today was absolutely excellent after a tough match against Spain. The reaction was on the highest level and Elliot Anderson had a good match as well.”

Guehi and Anderson both started the 2-0 victory, while O’Reilly missed the game through injury.

THE VERDICT HITS WHILE CITY PLAYERS ARE AWAY

The timing of the announcement means the three City players are now dealing with an extraordinary situation while representing England.

An independent commission found Manchester City guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought against them over financial-rule breaches during the period under investigation.

The Premier League said the commission found that City had arranged commercial agreements it described as “sham” arrangements, with funding from Abu Dhabi United Group used to disguise the true financial position of certain deals.

The commission found that the schemes artificially inflated revenue and reduced costs by more than £900 million during the affected period, according to the Premier League’s statement.

Manchester City strongly deny the charges and are set to appeal the decision.

KANE SCORED — THEN THE CITY STORY ARRIVED

Kane had his own reason to celebrate after scoring England’s second goal in the victory over Czechia.

But by the time the match was over, the focus had shifted to the developing Manchester City story.

For Kane, however, the message was straightforward.

England’s next challenge is Croatia, and the captain does not want the club controversy to distract from it.

The City players will eventually have to deal with the consequences of the verdict when they return to their club environment.

For now, England’s message is clear: international duty comes first.