Harry Kane: 'England weren't brave enough'

Harry Kane has stated that the England Under-21s need to be "braver" when it comes to tournament football after they exited the European Championships in the group stages.

The Tottenham Hotspur striker played as Gareth Southgate's Young Lions fell to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Italy on Wednesday, which ended their campaign in the Czech Republic.

Kane hopes that the players will be better for their experience in the tournament.

"Sometimes we have to be braver, a bit more ruthless and ­clinical. We could have done better in their box and a bit better in our box, too. There are a few things in all three games that we could have done ­better," he told the London Evening Standard.

"I don't think we reached our top form and we got punished. It hurts now and we have to see what we could have done better and learn from it."

England have now suffered three successive group-stage exits from the European Championships.