England recovered from an early scare to defeat DR Congo 2-1 and book their place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16, with Harry Kane scoring twice in the second half to complete the comeback.
DR Congo stunned the Three Lions in the seventh minute when Brian Cipenga fired home a low right-footed effort after being picked out by Chancel Mbemba. Thomas Tuchel’s side pushed for an equaliser but went into halftime trailing 1-0.
England finally found the breakthrough in the 74th minute as substitute Anthony Gordon delivered a cross from the left for Kane, who powered a header past Lionel Mpasi to make it 1-1.
With extra time looming, Kane struck again in the 85th minute. The England captain controlled the ball on the edge of the penalty area, turned away from his marker and rifled an unstoppable effort into the top corner to seal the comeback victory.
The brace also saw Kane climb the FIFA World Cup record books. After drawing level with Pelé through his first goal, the striker’s second took his tournament tally to 13 goals, moving him ahead of the Brazilian legend on the competition’s all-time scoring list.
(This is a developing story)
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