How Harry Kane found a new level to become the World Cup's most efficient goal-scorer

Harry Kane

After two matches England are equal top-scorers in Russia. It's only the third time they've won both opening fixtures at a World Cup, and they have just recorded their most emphatic win of any major tournament in their 6-1 demolition of Panama

England have only scored more than eight goals at a World Cup once before, in 1966, and they're on that number already with a group stage game still to play. But we won't get our hopes up just yet, don't even whisper that it's coming home.

The most decisive factor in those results has been Harry Kane. He is currently leading the race for the golden boot with five goals to date, and is now tied with Geoff Hurst as England's second-highest scorer at a World Cup. 

At the rate he's going (a goal for every 30 minutes he's on the pitch), Gary Lineker's 10-goal World Cup record will be caught during the first knock-out game.

What's most interesting is how efficiently the striker has achieved these numbers, and the closer you look, the more impressive his World Cup opening performances become.

Shot conversion

Kane's goal-scoring is nothing new - he scored five goals in six appearances during England's qualifying campaign, and the pressure of the captaincy and the World Cup has only inspired him to greater heights.

Nevertheless, five goals in the opening two matches would have been beyond even the most optimistic England fan's most bonkers bets. 

The most startling thing about his scoring record is his accuracy. Kane has not wasted a single chance on goal, converting each and every one of his shots and target. Only one attempt on goal so far in his tournament has been off-target. He doesn't even rank in the top 10 players in the list of total attempts, yet has steam-rollered into the lead for goals.

His finishing ability has looked near-perfect, remaining controlled and deliberate in his execution - as his technically brilliant 91st-minute winning header against Tunisia proved.

The numbers are impressive despite two of the goals being penalties, and according to Opta he is converting almost two times as many shots as his expected goals statistics indicate he should be. Romelu Lukaku is the only player to really rival him in shot conversion rate, scoring four goals out of five total attempts. It will be interesting to see how the two fare when on the same pitch should they feature in Thursday's Group G decider

Those penalties

Nothing will have eased the anxious England fan's worries looking ahead to the knock-out stages as much as Kane's emphatic penalty-taking against Panama. 

In the 30 degree heat Kane didn't seem to break sweat, completely unfazed by the prolonged time he spent waiting to take them as the referee tried to tame Panama's grabbing tactics on the edge of the box.

Kane was clinical in his delivery for both penalties against Panama Credit: Getty Images

The pace he generated with his spot kicks and the basic thumping brilliance in his near-identical top-left corner penalties indicated an air of rare confidence for an England player. He didn't play it safe, didn't second guess his decision and that is the difference.

Of course you can't compare two spot kicks against possibly the worst team at this World Cup to the pressure of a shoot-out,  but Kane's evident self-belief contributes to the growing hopes surrounding England.

Efficiency over quantity

Kane's role for England is different to that of the Ronaldos and Messis of the tournament. Portugal and Argentina want their talisman to create chances as well as convert them. Kane is not in Gareth Southgate's side to be a play-maker and his restrained involvement in general play is helping him realise his goalscoring potential. 

For the majority of the time Kane is on the margins of the action. He had only 54 touches in the 153 minutes he's played so far - compare that to Luis Suarez's 100, or Neymar's 177, which has brought just two goals scored between them. 

If you want to dissect it further, Kane has had only 11 touches of the ball in the opposition's penalty box - meaning almost half of his touches have resulted in goals. His movement in the area is deceptively simple, seemingly calculated based on where the loose balls are most likely to drop.

Calling it the Midas touch wouldn't be over-cooking it - even when he doesn't know the ball's coming his way, as we saw with Panama, it still finds its way to the back of the net. 

Kane's efficiency is the key to his success - you never feel like his time on the ball is overwhelming or excessive, and when it falls at his feet in the box you'll do well to bet his name will find itself on the scoresheet.