Kane Scores Twice to Drag England Past Congo DR 2-1: Mexico Await at the Azteca

[Midnight Wolf]

Harry Kane rescued England in the most Kane way imaginable. A 75th-minute header to equalise and a stunning right-footed strike four minutes from time to win it, both assisted by Anthony Gordon, completed a comeback from a goal down as England beat the Democratic Republic of Congo 2-1 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Wednesday, advancing to the round of 16 against Mexico in Mexico City.

The match nearly became one of the most embarrassing nights in English football history. Brian Cipenga gave Congo DR the lead after just seven minutes, firing low past Pickford from a well-worked move started by Mbemba's long diagonal ball that exposed Spence's positioning. England responded with the 73.9 percent statistical confidence nobody actually felt, spending the next 68 minutes battering a Congo DR side led by goalkeeper Mpasi who produced one of the great individual goalkeeping performances of this World Cup. Mpasi denied Bellingham three times, twice from headers and once from a stunning close-range effort. He denied Kane. He denied Saka. He clawed a shot off his own line with a defender scrambling alongside him.

Wissa hit the post when it was 0-1. The game teetered on the edge of one of the tournament's great upsets. Then Gordon found Kane at the back post in the 75th minute and the captain headed home. Then Gordon found Kane again from a different angle in the 86th and Kane, spinning to create space, drove a right-footed shot into the corner with enough conviction that Mpasi, who had stopped everything else, simply had nowhere to go. England are through. Mexico at the Azteca on Monday July 6. The pubs in England have been opened since this morning and the scenes after the 86th minute were remarkable. England sing Wonderwall together with their players after games now and that tradition appears to be holding.

England 2-1 DR Congo: Harry Kane's late double seals dramatic comeback winwww.nbcsports.com

[BringItOnRhodes43]

Kane trailing in a World Cup knockout game by a goal and scoring twice in the last 15 minutes to win it is the specific kind of player he is. He has done this before. The calm when it mattered was the opposite of the anxiety in the 87 minutes before it

[Ria99]

Mpasi had the game of his life and it still was not enough. That is the only honest verdict on his performance. He made saves that World Cup goalkeepers rarely make and England scored anyway. DR Congo can leave this tournament with enormous pride

[Kane]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3_ekbdc1to

What a finish to the game.

[Kev49]

Gordon with two assists in the last 15 minutes is the substitution decision that defines Tuchel's credibility here. Putting Gordon on at that moment, when England needed width and a different kind of delivery, was exactly the right call and it directly produced both goals

[Diane82]

Wissa hitting the post when it was 1-0 is the moment that probably decides this entire tournament retrospectively if England go on to win it. That post was inches away from sending England home in the round of 32

[MurkyVoyager]

England vs Mexico at the Azteca on July 6 is the match the bracket has been building toward from the moment these teams were placed in adjacent sections. Mexico just ended a 40-year knockout drought. England just came from behind in Atlanta. The Azteca at night is one of the most intense football environments on earth

[IronQuarry]

The Wonderwall tradition is the most charming thing in English international football right now and I say that as someone who generally finds Oasis references at sporting events somewhat tired. Players and supporters singing together after wins is exactly the kind of thing that builds a tournament experience worth remembering

[Stu96]

England were not good for 74 minutes of that game. They were excellent for the final 16. World Cups are won by teams that can do both, and learning how to find something late when nothing else has worked is a skill that distinguishes proper tournament teams