Gary Cahill says it is up to him and other experienced members of the England squad to tray and ease the pressure on captain Harry Kane at the World Cup finals.
Star striker Kane is seen by many as the man who will need to impress if the Three Lions are to progress towards the latter stages of the competition, with the Tottenham Hotspur ace having scored 13 goals in 24 international appearances to date.
He was also in prolific form in front of goal in the domestic season just ended, scoring 30 Premier League goals to narrowly miss out on being the top scorer in the Premier League for a third season in a row.
And Cahill believes that Kane will need assistance to cope with the high level of responsibility and expectation placed on his shoulders in what will be his first World Cup finals tournament.
Chelsea defender Cahill told Standard Sport: “It’s important the experienced members of the squad help him so he can concentrate on finding the net.
The message has been clear from the manager that he wants a number of leaders.”
Kane was on target as England defeated Nigeria 2-1 at Wembley in a warm-up friendly on Saturday and is expected to feature again when the Three Lions face Costa Rica at Elland Road on Thursday evening.
England, who will also face Panama and Belgium in Group G, open their World Cup campaign against Tunisia in Volgograd on Monday 18 June.
Kane is priced at 2.00 to be the top England goalscorer in the tournament, while he can be backed at 17.00 to be top overall goalscorer in the competition.
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