England’s route to World Cup final now clear after Harry Kane’s DR Congo double

England have made it through to the last 16 of the World Cup after beating DR Congo, with Harry Kane scoring twice in the second half to secure a 2-1 win for the Three Lions

England have progressed to the last 16 following victory over DR Congo, courtesy of a second-half fightback spearheaded by Harry Kane. The Three Lions’ captain was forced to step up after the interval, with his side trailing following Brian Cipenga’s seventh-minute opener.

After being refused a spot-kick in the first 45 minutes, despite appearing to have been felled by Lionel Mpasi in the Congo penalty area, Kane rose to the occasion under immense pressure to seal England’s passage to the round of 16.

With a quarter-hour left on the clock, the Bayern Munich striker nodded home an equaliser before unleashing a thunderbolt from within the area 86 minutes in to put his country ahead for the first time – England claiming a battling 2-1 triumph.

JOIN US ON FB! Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page

Thomas Tuchel’s focus can now shift towards last-16 preparations, where the Three Lions will meet Mexico at the Estadio Azteca.

England face the intimidating prospect of confronting the host nation on home soil, where they boast a formidable record. El Tri saw off Ecuador at the same venue to book their clash with England, courtesy of strikes from Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez.

The nation stretched their unbeaten World Cup run at the ground to 10 matches and their competitive record to 70 victories in 89 fixtures, suffering just two defeats at the stadium.

If England triumph over Mexico, they will go head-to-head with the victor of Brazil and Norway in the quarter-final at Miami Stadium, reports the Express.

Erling Haaland propelled his country to a win over the Ivory Coast, while Brazil clinched a tight victory over Japan courtesy of Gabriel Martinelli’s injury-time goal. That match is set for 11 July, and if victorious, England will journey to Atlanta for their semi-final fixture, pencilled in for 15 July.

England’s potential semi-final adversaries are still up in the air, with the last-32 games yet to be played out. They will face the winners from Switzerland vs Algeria, Colombia vs Ghana, Australia vs Egypt and Argentina vs Cape Verde.

Success there would put them within reach of the World Cup trophy. There are still several contenders who they could meet at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

In that half of the draw, Canada have already secured their spot in the last-16 to take on Morocco and Paraguay are set to challenge tournament favourites France.

Belgium square off against Senegal in the round of 32, while the United States lock horns with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Spain confront Austria and Portugal do battle with Croatia.