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England men's football team captain, Harry Kane, has hit back at Gary Lineker after the BBC pundit and former player called England's performance against Denmark at the ongoing European Championship 'sh*t'. 

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Kane, addressing the media ahead of the final group match against Slovenia, reminded the likes of Lineker that even they hadn't won anything for England during their playing days. 

"I'd never want to be disrespectful to any player, especially, you know, a player who's worn the shirt and knows what it's like to play for England. I always feel like [former players and pundits] have a responsibility. I know they've got to be honest and give their opinion, but also they have a responsibility of being an ex-England player," said Kane. 

"The bottom line is, we haven't won anything as a nation for a long, long time. And, you know, a lot of these ex-players were part of that as well... they do know that it's tough to play in these major tournaments. It's tough to play for England," he added. 

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Kane remained docile and said he wasn't "digging anyone out" but the reality remained that it was tough to compete in the international tournaments. 

Also read | Euro 2024: Luke Shaw a major doubt for remainder of England's tournament as left-back sits out of training

What did Lineker say?

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After England played a miserable 1-1 draw against Denmark, Lineker criticised the team for sitting deep and inviting pressure from the opponents on The Rest Is Football podcast. 

The former England international dubbed Kane's concession that the team did not know when to press opponents as "beyond concerning", before letting out the contentious adjective. 

"I mean, you can think of all sorts of words and expletives if you like, but it was sh*t," said Lineker, who also criticised manager Gareth Southgate. 

"Tactically, the first game [against Serbia]… and we’ve seen it in other tournaments as well. England kind of start OK and then get a goal and then everything changes, and it’s almost like the kind of tactics of, get a lead, hang onto it," he added. 

"Are they not coached to play that? If anyone says that the England team is not trying or not giving 100 per cent, that is nonsense. They’re just a little bit lost tactically. And that comes from the manager, I’m afraid. It really does. He’s got to get England playing higher up the pitch, as a unit. Because, at the moment, they’re not a unit.”

England would require a win in the final league match to advance to the knockouts. Failure to make it past the group stage with the talent pool England possess would be considered a massive failure on the part of Southgate and Kane. 

(With inputs from agencies)