News Focus
- England beat Croatia 4-2 in their opening World Cup Group L match in Dallas
- Harry Kane scored twice to equal Gary Lineker’s England World Cup goal record of ten
- Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford scored in the second half to secure the points
- Croatia equalised twice in the first half through Martin Baturina and Petar Musa
- England top the group and will face Ghana in their next match on Tuesday
England began their World Cup journey with an exciting 4-2 victory against Croatia at the Dallas Stadium. Over 70,000 fans watched Thomas Tuchel’s team display brilliant attacking football, though they showed some weakness at the back.
Captain Harry Kane led the attack with two first-half goals. He scored from a retaken penalty and added a powerful header from Declan Rice’s corner. These strikes brought his World Cup total to ten goals, matching Gary Lineker’s record for England.
However, the Three Lions looked nervous in defence. Croatia scored from their first two shots on target. Martin Baturina punished a slip by John Stones to equalise the first time. Just before the break, Petar Musa scored from close range after Ivan Perisic headed the ball to him.
The second half saw a different England side. Just two minutes after the restart, Jude Bellingham drove down the right wing and fired into the far corner to put England ahead again. The team kept pressing and created 22 shots during the match.
Marcus Rashford sealed the win with a late goal after combining with substitute Bukayo Saka. Croatia’s goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic made several excellent saves to keep the score down. Tuchel praised his team’s attacking reaction after the break but admitted the defensive mistakes need work before they face Ghana next.