England sealed their spot in the last-16 of the 2026 World Cup thanks to a dramatic 2-1 win over DR Congo.
DR Congo took the lead inside seven minutes, with Brian Cipenga beating Jordan Pickford with power at the near post. They could have made it two just before half time but Yoane Wissa’s shot from close range hit the woodwork with Jordan Pickford beaten. Moments later, England had a penalty appeal turned down, adding to their frustrations from the first half.
England looked to be on their way out of the World Cup until Harry Kane equalised with a header 15 minutes from time. And Kane won the match for the Three Lions with less than five minutes to go, rifling home an effort from the edge of the area. It’s the first time England have ever won a World Cup game having been behind at half-time. And it sets up a last-16 tie against co-hosts Mexico at the Estadio Azteca in the early hours of Monday morning.
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England vs DR Congo analysis:
England’s saviour
Where would England be without Harry Kane? Out of the World Cup for starters.
England struggled in attack in the first half, shocked by the early goal conceded. Although they had a lot of the ball, the Three Lions weren’t really testing the DR Congo defence. They didn’t have their first real chance until the 28th minute, with Declan Rice’s set-piece delivery bouncing off Ezri Konsa and wide. But that wasn’t even registered as a shot.
Moments later, Jude Bellingham tested the goalkeeper for the first time, with a good header. But it was well-saved by Lionel Mpasi. Timing at 30 minutes, it was the latest England have registered their first shot in a World Cup match since records began in 1966.
A key change
But England’s level dropped after half-time, and the same problems reared their heads. It wasn’t until Anthony Gordon came on that England turned things up a notch, finally resulting in the comeback. All of the focus will be on Kane, but Gordon deserves his plaudits.
In his 30 minutes on the left, Gordon created two chances, with only two England starters managing more. But both of those chances created were assists, setting up Kane’s two goals. Kane’s first goal was a header from close range, after Gordon’s lofted cross. It came via a bit of luck that England hadn’t had in the match, just doing enough to beat the goalkeeper.
The winner, though, was all about Kane. Again receiving the ball from Gordon, who had done well to ride a challenge, Kane created a bit of space for himself before beating Mpasi with the sheer power of his shot into the top corner. He moved ahead of Pele in the all-time World Cup goalscoring charts, and level with Just Fontaine on 13 strikes. Kane might not be battling Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe for the all-time World Cup record, but he’s very much in the Golden Boot race.
Rock-solid defending causes problems
This wasn’t a park-the-bus performance by DR Congo. Not by a long shot. But their defensive work was excellent — even with the eventual defeat. In fact, their opening goal came from their defence. It was a wonderful ball over the top by Chancel Mbemba that beat the England backline, eventually finding Cipenga. That wasn’t the only time Mbemba tried that pass too, consistently causing England problems until the very end.
Mbemba made a whopping nine clearances against England, a solid part of DR Congo’s back four. But he was joined by Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s seven clearances, and Axel Tuanzebe’s six. All three were excellent in the air too, combining for 12 headed clearances. Wan-Bissaka won that particular battle, though, with five headed clearances.
Just in front of them, Samuel Moutoussamy was the perfect shield, with five tackles. But he was helped by Ngal’ayel Mukau’s four possessions won in the defensive third. Goalscorer Cipenga was excellent defensively, too, winning possession five times in the defensive third. That was more than any of his teammates. Arthur Masuaku cannot be overlooked with four tackles, either.
And on the occasions the defensive setup was beaten, there was Lionel Mpasi. The goalkeeper had gone into the game with -1.84 goals prevented, the third-worst of any regular stop-stopper still in the competition. But he was excellent against England. Mpasi made five saves, all very good stops, to keep England out for the best part of 75 minutes. It worked out to 0.07 goals prevented, which probably would have been higher but for the placement of Kane’s winner.
DR Congo can hold their heads high for the tournament in general, and the way in which they went out.
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England’s right-wing problem
When Tuchel announced his England squad back in May, there was a lot of focus on their right-hand side. The lack of Trent Alexander-Arnold, and inclusion of Noni Madueke, were the main talking points. And England’s right proved to be their downfall.
Against DR Congo, Tuchel wasn’t able to name his first-choice combination on the right. Reece James was injured and Bukayo Saka still lacking full match fitness. So Djed Spence started at right-back, with Noni Madueke on the wing. And the combination caused England an almost immediate problem.
DR Congo’s opening goal wasn’t necessarily Spence’s fault, though he was highlighted. The right-back was drawn into the centre of the pitch to deal with Noah Sadiki, who was the target of a pass from Chancel Mbemba. That left space open for Cipenga, who received the ball and beat Pickford at his near post. But Spence had to move centrally, as both Marc Guehi and Ezri Konsa had been sucked over to the left.
The problem was that Madueke hadn’t followed Cipenga’s run, which had started not too far from him. Had Madueke been alert to the man near him, the goal may not have happened. Elliot Anderson wasn’t completely innocent either, with both standing watching, showing very little interest in tracking back.
At the other end of the pitch, it took Madueke some time to get into the game. He was the more involved of the two wingers, but indecision often hampered England’s attacks. The winger did eventually grow into the game, creating a joint team-high three chances.
But, England did look better once Madueke had been replaced by Bukayo Saka, and Rice had dropped to right-back with Spence coming off. England won the game, but their World Cup hopes may rest on getting things right on the right.
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