Harry Kane brushes off parallels with Erling Haaland ahead of Norway-England showdown: 'We're completely different'

Harry Kane declined to make comparisons with his Norwegian counterpart, Erling Haaland, ahead of the highly anticipated 2026 World Cup quarterfinal showdown between England and Norway in Miami.

Haaland and Kane have been two of the brightest stars in the ongoing tournament and have been consistent in terms of scoring for their respective sides.

With both of them all set to face off against each other on Sunday, Kane expressed respect towards Haaland and refused to draw any parallels with the Manchester City striker.

Kane and Haaland 'impossible' to compare

Speaking to the reporters on Friday, Kane said that comparisons with Haaland don't make sense as they are vastly different strikers on the pitch despite similar scoring output.

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"Impossible one for me to answer. First of all, I think we're completely different players, almost. I know we're both senior strikers, but we play almost two different positions.

"I see myself as a different player, although I score the same goals. I like to maybe touch the ball a little bit more, but I can also play as maybe the out-and-out nine," Kane said.

Kane also determined that Haaland is 'a machine' and that his 'goal-scoring record speaks for itself'.

Kane not focused on Golden Boot race

Kane and Haaland are currently among the leading scorers in the Golden Boot race. But the English striker made it clear that he is not chasing individual accolades and is scoring to achieve collective success.

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"My main goal is to win the World Cup with England, not the Golden Boot. But I also know I'm the goalscorer. I'm the number nine. So if I'm scoring goals, it's obviously going to help the team," Kane added.

The Norway-England World Cup quarterfinal showdown would take place on Sunday, July 12, at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.