Harry Kane's Ballon d'Or-worthy form, Thomas Tuchel's trophy record & eight reasons why England WILL win the 2026 World Cup

England's hopes may well rest on captain and star striker Harry Kane, so it's just as well he's in the form of his life. The Bayern Munich hitman is in contention to become the first Englishman to win a Ballon d'Or since Michael Owen a quarter of a century ago, and that may not even be contingent on the Three Lions lifting the trophy in North America.

At the ripe old age of 32, Kane delivered what was comfortably the best goal-scoring campaign of his prolific career to date at club level, incredibly passing the 60-goal mark courtesy of hat-tricks on the final day of another title-winning Bundesliga season and in the DFB-Pokal showpiece. He bagged 36 of his strikes in the league, adding another 14 in the Champions League.

The striker would claim the Golden Shoe as the continent's top scorer by some distance, finishing nine and 11 goals ahead of closest challengers Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, respectively - two of the world's best strikers. His return of 61 efforts places him in the all-time top five for most goals in a European season in all competitions, and he could hardly be heading to the World Cup in better form.

Kane will form part of a crucial spine for England, and the trio of midfielders behind him may well be equally important to their chances of success. Thankfully, the Three Lions boast what will be one of the most solid and dynamic trios at the tournament.

It looks highly likely that Elliot Anderson will be asked to sit at the base as a deep-lying playmaker who is also capable of biting into tackles where required, while Declan Rice should be given the freedom to shuttle back and forth as a box-to-box presence, although he also has the engine to ensure his defensive duties are fulfilled, of course.

Ahead of them, it seems as though Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers could role-share in the No.10 position, unless the latter is deployed out wide, where he has demonstrated he is more than capable of being a threat for Aston Villa. Both are attacking midfielders who combine vision, creativity and an eye for goal with an effective physicality that could be crucial in giving Tuchel's side an edge.

Other than Portugal and Spain, few countries can claim to have such a fine balance in the middle of the park, and they would still have Kobbie Mainoo to come off the bench. England must just hope that they click on the biggest stage.

Sir Gareth Southgate never truly overcame questions over his lack of top-level managerial experience and know-how in high-pressure situations like a World Cup semi-final or European Championship final, but the FA now have the kind of elite coach in charge who they believe can finally haul a talented generation of English players over the line.

Aside from being revered as one of the finest tacticians in the modern game, Tuchel is also something of a cup specialist - a trait that should lend itself very well to international tournament football.

At Borussia Dortmund, he led his side to the final of the DFB-Pokal in each of his two seasons at the helm, ending a five-year wait for major silverware at the second time of asking in 2017 as BVB downed Eintracht Frankfurt in Berlin. He would then lift the Coupe de France in his second season with Paris Saint-Germain and took the club to its first-ever Champions League final in 2020, where they would suffer a narrow defeat to Bayern Munich.

During his time at Chelsea, Tuchel once again demonstrated his aptitude for the cup competitions, guiding the Blues to four finals out of the five that were played during his tenure. The pinnacle was of course leading an unfancied side to a second Champions League crown in 2021, masterminding a victory over Pep Guardiola's Manchester City in the final. That came a fortnight after Chelsea were beaten by Leicester City in the FA Cup showpiece, and they would agonisingly lose both the 2022 FA and Carabao Cup finals to Liverpool on penalties.

There are plenty of heartbreaks mixed in there, but Tuchel has demonstrated the ability to take all sorts of teams to within touching distance of silverware at the very least, and you wouldn't bet against him repeating that on the World Cup stage.

After taking the job in 2024, Tuchel made it clear from the outset that he wasn't afraid to make some unpopular decisions, and he kept his promise by not selecting what would have been his best squad on paper. Staying true to his 'team over talent' mantra, he left out a raft of big names, including Cole Palmer, Phil Foden and Trent Alexander-Arnold.

While the manager has come in for widespread criticism for some of those calls, including from the overlooked Harry Maguire and his family, it would be remiss to believe there wasn't some method to the madness. There will certainly be fewer distractions, with an obvious best starting XI - bar some rotation in one or two positions - and a fairly clear hierarchy to the squad. Tuchel seems determined to build a togetherness to form the backbone of the tilt at the World Cup.

"From day one we were clear we were trying to build the best possible team, which is not necessarily the 26 most talented players," the German told a press conference after his squad was officially revealed. "Teams win championships - and what we're trying to achieve can only be achieved as a team. We have players ready and committed to the idea of team spirit and being unselfish."

He added: "We need a bit of luck. We need our selection right. Stay healthy. Catch momentum. Build a brotherhood. Play with courage, hunger. And take advantage of special moments."

A behind-the-scenes video of one of Tuchel's team meetings at England's U.S. camp also showed him insisting he wants his side to become a team "no one wants to play against" during the tournament.

England's chances of ending their 60-year wait for a major trophy are enhanced by the lack of an obvious pre-tournament favourite, with a number of international football's big hitters going through transitional phases.

European champions Spain look like the biggest threat once again on paper, but key men Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams are injury doubts, while there will also be question marks over their defence. France, winners in 2018 and runners-up in 2022, are top heavy and lack a bit of quality in midfield, while Portugal's backline and reliance on 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo could also be exploited.

Meanwhile, Germany and Brazil don't feel like the formidable powers they once were as they search for an identity under respective relatively new head coaches in Julian Nagelsmann and Carlo Ancelotti, and the Netherlands seem more like dark horses than real contenders.

The theory might be a little reductive, but there is the sense that the lack of a dominant force plays into England's hands, as long as they can become a cohesive unit themselves in North America.

If all goes to plan, England's route through the tournament should be a pretty straightforward one - although there is, of course, no avoiding the big dogs once you get to the business end of proceedings.

We already know that the Three Lions have been drawn in a fairly favourable group alongside Croatia, Ghana and Panama, with the expanded 48-team tournament resulting in the top seeds being more spread out. They will be expected to top that, to set up a last-32 tie against a third-placed side - most likely Ivory Coast, Ecuador, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Norway, Senegal, Austria, Algeria, Colombia, Uzbekistan or DR Congo.

While there are a few nations there they would want to avoid, England would still be firm favourites and would expect to progress to the last 16, where the challenge of facing Mexico at the iconic Estadio Azteca could await, although South Korea, Scotland, Japan or Sweden are also possible opponents. Facing the co-hosts on home soil would be a daunting prospect, but you would still expect Tuchel's charges to get the job done on the pitch.

Things inevitably get more complicated thereafter, but England would be favourites to beat Ancelotti's Brazil, who are a work in progress, in the most likely quarter-final scenario. Holders Argentina or Portugal would then lie in wait in the semis, before a probable showdown against Spain in a repeat of the Euro 2024 final, if La Roja can beat France in their theoretical semi-final.

There are plenty of variables, but you have to feel that the Three Lions' path to the semi-finals, at least, is mapped out. From there, they have every chance of beating Argentina or Portugal, albeit narrowly, and the margins will be fine once again in the showpiece against Luis de la Fuente's Spain or Didier Deschamps' France.

Tuchel's squad selection might have raised plenty of eyebrows, but there are still several players with plenty of tournament know-how who have been there before with England and will be determined to finally get over the line in North America.

Jordan Pickford, John Stones, Jordan Henderson, Marcus Rashford and Kane are all veterans of the surprise run to the semi-finals in 2018, Reece James, Rice, Bellingham and Bukayo Saka joined them in the squad that went so agonisingly close at Euro 2020, and all of them bar James also travelled to the 2022 World Cup.

Then, two years ago, Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa, Mainoo, Eberechi Eze, Anthony Gordon, Ivan Toney and Ollie Watkins all picked up invaluable tournament experience in the run to the final of Euro 2024, where England fell just short once again.

The squad's combination of youth, experience and, indeed, heartbreak on some of the biggest stages should serve them well as they look to seize a golden opportunity to end the years of hurt this summer.

And wouldn't there just be some lovely symmetry if England were able to end the long, long wait for a major trophy this summer, 60 years on from the famous victory over West Germany at Wembley? The 2026 final in New Jersey will fall just 11 days before the anniversary of the Three Lions' one and only triumph at a major tournament, and perhaps it is written in the stars that they will repeat the feat six decades on.

They have arguably never been better placed to do so, with Southgate laying the foundations despite the heartbreaks of 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2024. Having been within touching distance plenty of times in the modern era, the Three Lions can lean on that experience to go one step further; they have to believe that they finally now have the tools required - both mentally and in terms of personnel - to get over the line.

With an elite manager at the helm and a raft of top-level, youthful but experienced players across the pitch, England have every chance of emulating the heroes of 1966 in North America this summer.