Kane Scores Twice As England Defeat Croatia In Six-Goal Thriller

The Three Lions made a winning start to their World Cup campaign after they scored four past old foes Croatia.

Thomas Tuchel’s side looked top class going forward but felt shaky at the back, conceding twice in the first half.

Captain Harry Kane put his team ahead after 12 minutes with a twice taken penalty after Croatian keeper Dominik Livakovic was off his line before saving Kane’s first effort.

Croatia, who beat England in the 2018 World Cup semi-final, levelled the game after 36 minutes with Martin Baturina blasting his attempt past the reach of Jordan Pickford who couldn’t keep the ball from hitting the net.

It only took Kane six minutes to put England back into the lead after meeting Declan Rice’s pefeclty placed corner with his head giving Livakovic no chance.

The header has brought the Bayern Munich forward level on World Cup goals with Gary Lineker on 10, and his 81^st in total for England.

Seconds before the break Petar Musa steered his effort past Pickford to bring the scores level at half-time.

It only took Jude Bellingham a minute in the second-half to show exactly why Tuchel selected him ahead of Morgan Rogers, powerfully storming past his marker and slotting his finish into the far corner to put his country back in the lead.

Marcus Rashford, on as a substitute, ended any lingering concerns with a composed finish five minutes from time as England move on to face Ghana in Boston.

Tuchel will know there is work to do despite an impressive win and a scoreline that was a fair reflection of their superiority, especially in the second half.

England were potent in attack, particularly for a spell after the break when Bellingham scored and Croatia somehow held out during a period of intense pressure.

Kane joined Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland in making an early pitch for the Golden Boot, while Bellingham gave a powerhouse display he embellished with a fine goal.

It was in defence, however, where Tuchel will feel there must be improvements as Croatia scored two goals that could have been avoided.

In the end, though, it was the three points that mattered and England fully merited their win.

England face Ghana on Tuesday (21:00 BST) while elsewhere in Group L Croatia face Panama three hours later (00:00 BST)