England, Belgium and the USA are through to the round of 16 in the FIFA World Cup following dramatic late victories in their round of 32 clashes, with goals from Harry Kane, Romelu Lukaku and Malik Tillman ultimately proving decisive.
Harry Kane bagged a brace to drag a trailing England back from the brink of defeat to DR Congo before securing a thrilling 2-1 come-from-behind win that guarantees them a last-16 showdown with Mexico.
The Three Lions endured a nightmare start as Brian Cipenga’s well-struck effort, fired in from a lofted ball from Chancel Mbemba, sailed into the net after only nine minutes, a goal that sent shivers down spines as England struggled to get into their rhythm throughout much of the remainder of the first half, the woodwork frustrating them once as Yoane Wissa struck the frame of the goal with a long-range effort prior to their captain getting them on the scoreboard with a deftly glanced header with only 15 minutes remaining before smashing home the winner four minutes from time.
Belgium, who’ve seen something of an international renaissances in recent years thanks to an array of world-class talent in their ranks, overturned a two-goal deficit against Senegal, a fixture in which a Habib Diarra’s opening salvo on the cusp of half-time had been added to by Ismaila Sarr with around half-an-hour on the clock.
But the tie was completely flipped in the final minutes as a second-half Romelu Lukaku introduced impact, Youri Tielemans provided a lifeline with only four minutes left and then by netting a sensational spot-kick in extra-time and complete one of the tournament’s most remarkable turnarounds that now sets them up for a blockbuster clash with the co-hosts and neighbours USA after Folarin Balogun’s opening-half goal for the USA was followed up with a blistering free-kick by Malik Tillman to cement a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, a victory which came despite seeing Balogun sent off following a VAR review.
