England 4-2 Croatia: Harry Kane levels Gary Lineker World Cup record as Three Lions get off to a flyer

Harry Kane is simply inevitable for England. 

Plenty of speech up of the tourney was centred astir England's reliance connected Kane, and the superstar striker surely delivered yet again for his country. 

Kane scored six goals successful Russia successful 2018, added different 2 successful Qatar and has already got connected the scoresheet different 2 times for England successful the 2026 tournament. 

Followed up by goals from Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford, Kane's brace helped England seal a 4-2 triumph implicit Croatia, portion it besides saw England's all-time grounds scorer scope different goalscoring milestone.

England 4-2 Croatia: What conscionable happened?

England and Croatia produced arguably the crippled of the 2026 World Cup frankincense far, with the Three Lions securing a 4-2 triumph astatine AT&T Stadium. 

Thomas Tuchel's men doubly took the pb done Kane successful the archetypal half, but were disappointingly pegged backmost level connected some occasions by strikes from Martin Baturina and Petar Musa.

Clearly unimpressed by England's first-half performance, with a deficiency of velocity and strength to their game, Tuchel looked to person delivered immoderate stern words to his side, who came flying retired of the blocks successful the 2nd half. 

Jude Bellingham restored the Three Lions' pb wrong 2 minutes of the restart, and England proceeded to capsicum Dominik Livakovic's extremity successful the minutes that followed.

Although Croatia managed to enactment wrong 1 goal, England were the squad successful power from past connected and yet enactment the crippled to furniture erstwhile Marcus Rashford showed large composure earlier adding a 4th precocious connected successful the game. 

England's four-goal tally ensured they claimed a deserving 3 points successful Group L's opening fixture, providing plentifulness of crushed for optimism moving forward.

England 4-2 Croatia: The large talking point

England depart AT&T Stadium with each 3 points, and portion that is crushed capable for excitement among Three Lions supporters, Kane's commencement to the tourney is arsenic significant. 

The striker's first-half brace saw him people his ninth and 10th World Cup goals, drafting level with Gary Lineker's grounds for astir goals scored astatine a World Cup for England. 

It took Kane conscionable 42 minutes of England's archetypal crippled astatine the 2026 tourney to adjacent the record. The skipper converted from the spot astatine the 2nd clip of asking aft conscionable 12 minutes, pursuing a retake aft an encroachment from Kane's archetypal saved punishment effort, before powering location a header minutes earlier the break.

England volition beryllium hoping Kane tin proceed his goalscoring commencement to the tourney and surpass Lineker's grounds successful the coming games, with immoderate hopes of occurrence for the Three Lions apt to beryllium connected the forward's form.

Kane eyes goalscoring record

England's all-time grounds goalscorer volition present person his sights acceptable connected surpassing Lineker's grounds and lasting unsocial arsenic the Three Lions' apical scorer astatine the World Cup. 

However, the guardant volition besides person his oculus connected different large grounds aft scoring his 10th extremity astatine the World Cup. 

The striker is conscionable present six goals down Lionel Messi and Miroslav Klose's grounds of 16 goals scored astatine the World Cup, though the Argentine and a definite Kylian Mbappe volition surely widen that grounds during this tournament.

England 4-2 Croatia: What happens next?

Kane volition presumption England's upcoming lucifer against Ghana arsenic the cleanable accidental to surpass Lineker's grounds and determination person to the all-time World Cup extremity record. 

Croatia, meanwhile, volition beryllium hoping to bounce backmost from opening-day decision erstwhile they conscionable Group L underdogs Panama astatine BMO Field connected Wednesday.