Atlanta, July 2:
Harry Kane scored two second-half goals to help England rally for a 2-1 victory over Congo and a spot in the round of 16 at the World Cup on Wednesday. England’s all-time leading scorer evened the score with a header after Brian Cipenga had given Congo a surprising halftime lead. Kane then scored the decisive goal into the top corner in the 86th minute at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
For much of the game, England looked to be headed for one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.
The 1966 World Cup champions will next play co-host Mexico in the round of 16 in Mexico City on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the 40-year wait is over. Mexicans had learned to live with defeats in the knockout stages of the World Cup. On seven occasions, El Tri fans were left heartbroken at this stage. Not anymore.
Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez scored within a nine-minute span in the first half and Mexico defeated Ecuador 2-0 on Tuesday night to break a four-decade drought in the knockout stage and progress to the round of 16.
Quinones opened the scoring in the 22nd minute and Jimenez added a goal in the 31st for the Mexicans, who had not won a knockout-stage match since defeating Bulgaria in the round of 16 when they hosted the tournament in 1986. Mexico coach Javier Aguirre was one of the starting midfielders in that team in ‘86.
Mexico lost seven consecutive times at that same stage from 1994 to 2018 and didn’t advance past the group stage in 2022.
Aguirre, who returned as Mexico’s head coach in August of 2024, was an assistant in 1994 and was the coach in 2002 and 2010.
For Quinones, it was a third goal in the tournament and he is now El Tri’s second-highest scorer in World Cup history behind Luis “Matador” Hernandez and Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, who scored four each.
Quinones, who was the scoring leader in the Saudi Pro League last season, has become the spark in the attack that Mexico lacked in previous World Cups.