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Harry Kane helped England with two outstanding goals as the Three Lions survived a World Cup disaster against DR Congo this afternoon.
It looked like Thomas Tuchel’s controversial team selection would backfire in spectacular fashion when they fell behind Brian Cipenga’s goal and struggled to find an equaliser, until Kane struck in the 75th minute.
And the Bayern Munich striker, who captained England to a record 90, struck again with four minutes remaining to send his side through to the round of 16 against Mexico in the early hours of Monday.
It was the first time England came from behind to win a World Cup match since the final in 1966 against West Germany.
They have never reached the finals since and, on this evidence, the wait will continue.
Yes, England have the ball and yes, DR Congo goalkeeper, Lionel Mpasi, produced an encouraging performance but the lack of quality at both ends of the pitch was alarming.
DR Congo’s defense was made up of Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who was relegated from the Premier League with West Ham last season, Axel Tuanzebe, who was relegated from the Premier League with Burnley last season, Chancel Muemba, who was relegated from the Premier League with Newcastle in 2016, and Arthur Masuaka, who was signed by Sunderland.
To a man, they were very good and, along with Mpasi, kept England at bay until Kane’s late intervention.
Painful England are slow on the blocks
England had poor conditions in the first 25 minutes due to a lack of cohesion throughout the team. DR Congo are the best, especially in midfield and it was no surprise when they took the lead after seven minutes.
A good passage created a space for Mbemba to drive forward and play a through ball that sent Cipenga out. There was no England player within 10 yards of the Almeria defender and he braced himself before firing inside Jordan Pickford, who should have done better.
If that was a wake-up call for England, it went unnoticed as they continued to look completely devoid of a game plan. Wingers Noni Madueke and Marcus Rashford struggled to impose themselves and often took the easy way out by cutting inside and playing the ball back.
England’s frustration was summed up by the game of Jude Bellingham who sharpened Nathanael Mbuku which earned him a yellow card.
The much-maligned hydration break came at the perfect time for England, allowing Thomas Tuchel to tap into his players and their progress was immediate as Mpasi was finally tested.
His first save was to push Jude Bellingham’s header from Declan Rice’s cross with his left hand.
Mpasi also received a lot of help from his defenders as Tuanzebe threw himself into the challenge of denying Kane when the England captain was about to take his shot. A loose ball was picked up by Madueke and his cross was turned in by Rashford at the far post but former Manchester United team-mate Aaron Wan-Bissaka cleared the shot off the line.
It wasn’t all one-way traffic, however, and DR Congo nearly doubled their lead after 41 minutes.
Wan-Bissaka came down the right and his low cross caught the England defenders napping and Yoane Wissa cut in and fired his close-range shot wide of the right-hand post.
There was a scuffle after a minute when Kane was played outside Mpasi’s outstretched arm. England called for a penalty but the Jordanian referee Adham Makhadmeh saw that the star of Bayern Munich had sunk.
England eventually got down to business and had more chances as the first half drew to a close.
Mpasi denied Bellingham and with an excellent save from Madueke’s cross he again blocked Kane who had found space on goal to connect to Rice’s corner.
Kane pulls England out of the hole, too
England continued to press in the second half but could not find the killer touch.
Rashford shot wide, Mpasi pulled off another amazing ball to block Bellingham’s shot that was deflected off the post.
That was until the 74th minute when Anthony Gordon, looking for Rashford, intercepted the ball and Kane passed his marker and headed the ball past Mpasi. It was his 12th goal in a World Cup final, equaling Pele.
The relief was palpable and, as the DR Congo crumbled, England finally began to assert its authority.
It still took another moment of Kane’s ingenuity to solve it, though.
Mpasi saved from Bellingham from the twelfth and when the ball was recycled by Gordon, it fell to Kane, who dragged the ball away from his marker before unleashing a right-footed driver into the net.
It was tough in DR Congo but England will not be complacent, although they know they will have to play much better against the hated Azteca at the weekend.
