After netting in the North London derby on Sunday, striker Harry Kane is hopeful of making the difference against a fresh rival when Scotland visit Wembley Stadium on Sunday.
The 23-year-old had missed 10 games for Tottenham Hotspur with an ankle injury, but played from the start against Arsenal at the weekend and scored a second-half penalty to earn his team a point.
It was the fifth goal Kane has scored in four games against Arsenal, while he also struck against London rivals Chelsea and West Ham United last season.
The stats certainly back up Kane’s assertion the big games bring out the best in him.
And the striker is relishing the visit of the Auld Enemy in Friday’s 2018 World Cup qualifier.
“I seem to do well in games with rivals, there’s no reason that should be different for England,” said Kane, who has scored five goals in 17 England appearances.
“If I’m selected I will be full of pride and try to help us win the game.
“It feels great to be back for Spurs and England. It’s always special. I missed the last two [v Malta and Slovenia] and that was hard to take. I feel fit and it’s great to be back involved.
“I had been training before the Arsenal game and it was in the back of my mind that I wanted to be fit enough to be called up. It was great to play in that match and to get the call up made the day even better.
“It was a good game to come back in. It’s one I look forward to every year. It wasn’t a bad result and great to be back on the scoresheet.
“Now it’s from one rivalry to another.”
Kane is included in Gareth Southgate’s 25-man squad alongside Spurs club-mates Eric Dier, Danny Rose and Kyle Walker.
Harry Kane and Kyle Walker in training
Defender Walker featured for England in their 3-2 win against Scotland in August 2013 and has filled Kane in on what to expect come Friday night.
“Kyle has been involved before against Scotland and we spoke about it on Monday,” added Kane.
“He said the atmosphere was like nothing he had ever heard before.
“I take that as something to be positive about, hopefully it can inspire a good performance.
“We need to go out with a good mentality and put in a good performance. We don’t want to pick up silly bookings early on and risk getting anyone sent off.
“We need everyone on the pitch, we need cool heads.
“We had a meeting on Monday night and we watched a montage of previous games and moments. “We can all feel the importance of this game.
“We know how big a game this is and there is going to be an amazing atmosphere on Friday.”
