The England team avoided a historic elimination and advanced to the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup thanks to the hierarchy of their captain, Harry Kane, who scored a decisive double to beat the surprising Democratic Republic of the Congo 2-1.
The match, played this Wednesday, seemed to be heading towards one of the biggest surprises of the tournament when the team African took the lead on the scoreboard. At minute 7, Brian Cipenga took advantage of a mistake by the English defense to score 0-1 and silence England.
For much of the match, England looked uncomfortable, imprecise and outmatched by a physical, orderly and competitive rival.
The team led by Thomas Tuchel could not find clarity and was approaching a historic elimination. However, when all seemed lost, Harry Kane appeared.
Harry Kane’s night
Between minutes 75 and 86, Kane changed the course of the game with two goals in just eleven minutes. The English striker once again demonstrated his leadership, opportunism and composure in decisive moments.
With this double, the captain reached five goals in the World Cup 2026 and established himself as one of the main protagonists of the tournament, in addition to remaining in the fight for the Ballon d’Or.
Kane also continues to climb the all-time scoring table in World Cups. It reached the 12 goals in his World Cup career, ranking seventh among top scorers, equaling Brazilian Pelé and surpassing Cristiano Ronaldo and Thomas Müller.
You are now located at:
- a goal from Just Fontaine
- two goals from Gerd Müller
- three goals from Ronaldo Nazário
- four goals from Miroslav Klose
Players with the most headed goals in the ENTIRE history of the World Cup:
7 – Klose 🇩🇪
5 – Müller, G. 🇩🇪
4 – KANE 🏴 (+1 today)
4 – Kocsis 🇭🇺
4 – Szarmach 🇵🇱
4 – Skuhravy 🇨🇿
4 – Klinsmann 🇩🇪— MisterChip (Alexis) (@2010MisterChip) July 1, 2026
This record confirms his place among the great scorers in the history of the World Cups and projects him as one of the top active scorers in the competition, only behind Kylian Mbappé and Lionel Messi.