London, Nov 13 (AP) England manager Gareth Southgate and goal scoring midfielder Jordan Henderson both paid tribute to captain Harry Kane after his hat-trick helped their side beat Albania 5-0 in their World Cup qualifier at Wembley.

Kane's treble, plus Henderson's goal and one from Harry Maguire all came before the break as shell shocked Albania were blown away by England.

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Southgate's side still need a point to win the group and qualify for Qatar - but that should be a formality against San Marino on Monday.

On Kane, Southgate said, "I thought Harry's centre-forward performance, his all-round performance was excellent.

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"Not just the goals, his hold-up play, he bullied his centre-backs, he brought his team-mates in very well, pressured the opponent well, so I thought it was a really pleasing performance from him."

He added, "I think you could see how good he is as a player, over the years his goal record speaks for itself really.

"In training his finishing is outstanding, you give him half a chance, you know he's going to take it and that was the case today you know, he was clinical in front of goal and deserved his hat-trick." (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)