AL KHOR, Qatar (AP) — Like all great forwards, Harry Kane’s timing was perfect.
The England captain stormed out on Sunday, scoring his first goal at this year’s World Cup. in a 3-0 win over Senegal that set up an unmissable match against France in the quarterfinals.
“I was patiently waiting to try to score and luckily that was today,” said Kane, who was the top scorer at the last World Cup. “I feel good and hopefully this can start a good run for me personally because I know that will help the team as well.”
It was certainly a good time for Kane to end his dry spell in Qatar because Kylian Mbappe, the tournament’s top scorer. with five goals, he is looking forward to facing England on Saturday at Al Bayt Stadium.
With that in mind, England could do with their most prolific striker in his prime.
“It’s the biggest test we can face,” England manager Gareth Southgate said. “They are world champions, they have an incredible depth of talent, outstanding individual players, very difficult to face and score goals. It is a fantastic challenge.
“(Mbappé) is a world-class player, he has already given great moments in this tournament and in previous tournaments.”
Kane scored six goals at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, each helping England reach the semi-finals. But it’s been more difficult this time, as the captain had to wait until first-half stoppage time against Senegal to finally get one.
When the time came, he never seemed to be lost. Head down, he fired a shot past Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy to put England up 2-0. Then, with open arms, relief spilled over as he ran outside to celebrate.
“As a forward, scoring goals is what you do and it’s one of the best feelings you can have in football,” Kane said. “The ball sat very well and the connection was perfect. I had one just before that I should have done better with, so it was nice to see it come in.”
It was Kane’s 52nd goal for England, placing it one shy of Wayne Rooney’s national record. He also surpassed Gary Lineker as his country’s top scorer in major tournaments with 11 goals.
“You could see the momentum he gave it in the second half,” Southgate said. “For any striker, when you haven’t scored, he’s there in the back of your mind and you get that confidence boost when he arrives.
“There is nobody who would rather have in that moment approaching the goal, a really clinical finish.”
England’s great strength at this year’s World Cup has been the number of different scoring threats they have, and another emerged on Sunday when Jordan Henderson gave his side the lead. Bukayo Saka completed the scoring with his third in the tournament.
Marcus Rashford, who has also scored three goals in Qatar, did not even start.
“The best thing for us is that the targets have been extended,” Southgate said. “We haven’t depended on him (Kane). It’s great that we’re showing another side of our attacking game.”
Jude Bellingham is also one of England’s goalscorers, but his game is so much more. He proved it with a commanding performance in midfield against Senegal.
“OMG @BellinghamJude is unbelievably good. He is the leader of this team. His parents must be very proud. I love him,” Lineker wrote on Twitter after the 19-year-old Borussia Dortmund midfielder crossed Henderson for the opener in the 38th minute.
Until then, Senegal had been creating the most dangerous chances. But that all changed once Bellingham took control, charging into the box to help Henderson before starting the play that led to Kane’s goal.
“I’ve spoken highly of him,” Kane said. “He is a fantastic player, he has everything with and without the ball, he presses very well, he moves around the field, he shoots down. With the ball he can run, face players, play a through ball. As you saw today, he was really important with our goals.”
STAYING POWER
The game was played to the sound of the drums of the Senegalese fans, who provided the soundtrack from start to finish. England fans struggled to be heard above the noise, even as the result was beyond doubt.
STERLING WAIT
Raheem Sterling was ruled out before the match began on a “family matter” and is back in England. There was no indication if or when he might return.
RECORD SET
Bellingham became the youngest England player to provide an assist at a World Cup.
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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
