It has been a guiding principle for Harry Kane. Here, the England captain had numerous nearly-butnot-quite moments and, were it not him, it would have been possible to think it was going to be one of those nights.
This is Kane. And the red-letter occasion when he celebrated his 100th England cap was only going to end one way - with him making it happen, getting through on the strength of his talent and remorselessness.
There were 57 minutes on the Wembley clock when Kane lashed high into the Finland net from just inside the area after a lovely first-time pass from Trent Alexander-Arnold. It was Alexander-Arnold's night, too; the weight and incision of his passing was sumptuous.
Kane did the rest. A touch with the outside of his right boot to cut inside Robert Ivanov; the hammer brought down. The cameras cut to Kane's family in the stands and it would do so again before he was withdrawn.
Again, Alexander-Arnold was the architect, playing a beautiful return ball to the debutant, Noni Madueke, who had come on as a substitute. Madueke pulled back; Kane banged first time into the far corner. The captain had said on Monday that he wanted 100 England goals, which sounded like wishful thinking. It is never wise to question his targets. At the age of 31, he has 68.
This story is from the September 11, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the September 11, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Beaumont may step in at RFU if Ilube quits over pay fiasco
Sir Bill Beaumont could be parachuted into the Rugby Football Union as interim chair in the event Tom Ilube falls on his sword amid the botched handling of the executive pay scandal engulfing the game.
'An exciting new era' Everton owners promise return to glory days after £500m deal
The Friedkin Group vowed to restore Everton to their \"rightful place in the Premier League table\" after completing a takeover that brought the turbulent era of Farhad Moshiri to an end.
Friedkin Group brings hope of much-needed stability and ambition
The Friedkin Group's takeover of Everton represents a momentous day for those exhausted and resigned to calamity by the tenure of Farhad Moshiri.
A humble Hamilton hero who was born to score
Ex-coaches in New Zealand on Chris Wood's rise from selfless schoolboy to poster boy at Nottingham Forest
Solanke puts Spurs through despite Forster's blunders
Like a song that changes time signature for the hell of it, like a friend that inexplicably blanks you, like a match report that noodles away for ages instead of just telling you what happened, Tottenham Hotspur remain medically incapable of doing things the simple way.
“The World Cup loss fuelled a fire in me to become the best’
Ellie Kildunne's infectious enthusiasm for the women's game has her dreaming of a Twickenham final in 2025
'Usyk is fighting for his country': Dubois tips Fury to lose rematch
Daniel Dubois, the IBF world heavyweight champion, believes that Oleksandr Usyk will again defeat Tyson Fury in Riyadh tomorrow night.
Coe pledges radical reform in bid for IOC presidency
Sebastian Coe has promised to radically transform the International Olympic Committee if he is elected its next president in March - and says his track record of delivering at the London 2012 Games and at World Athletics shows he is the right choice for the leading job in sport.
Football's new fetish Forget Nicolas Jover and stylish set-piece coaches, bring on the directors of vibes
It's 25 October 2012. Those of you who follow the Austrian regional leagues won't need reminding.
Rush to start work caused enormous cost overruns, says new boss of HS2
Enormous budget overruns on the HS2 high-speed railway have been blamed by its new chief executive on a \"rush to start\", as the Department for Transport admitted it did not know what the line would cost.
