England’s Harry Kane (9) celebrates after scoring a goal throughout the World Cup Group L soccer match between England and Croatia in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
ARLINGTON, Texas — Hey, Jude, you and Harry didn’t let England down.
Harry Kane scored twice to equal the English record for World Cup goals, and Jude Bellingham put England in front for good two minutes into the second half of a 4-2 victory over Croatia on Wednesday.
Martin Baturina and Petar Musa answered each of Kane’s first-half goals in a rematch of a 2018 semifinal won by Croatia. Musa’s goal got here on the ultimate play before the whistle ending the primary half.
READ: World Cup 2026: How are the favorites shaping up?
The even rating didn’t last long once play resumed.
Bellingham took an extended pass from Elliot Anderson and stayed clear of the defender the remaining of the way in which, sending a shot past Dominik Livakovic and in off the far post. Marcus Rashford padded the lead within the eighty fifth minute.
“He just told us to let the shackles off,” Kane said of coach Thomas Tuchel’s halftime message after Croatia pulled even so late before the break. “The way in which we conceded that second goal will not be the team we would like to be. He finally just said, ‘What’s the worst that may occur? We lose the match, first group game, we get on with it.’ We move on. Just go and sort of show the world who we may be.”
Kane, who won the Golden Boot on the 2018 World Cup in Russia by scoring six times, is as much as 10 World Cup goals, tying Gary Lineker’s mark from the 1986 and 1990 tournaments.
The 32-year-old’s first goal got here on his second likelihood on a penalty kick after Livakovic’s save on the primary try was nullified by a video review that showed each his feet off the goal line as Kane was striking the ball.
England’s Jude Bellingham (10) celebrates his team’s third goal throughout the World Cup Group L soccer match between England and Croatia in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Kane went the identical way toward the suitable post with the second attempt, while Livakovic lunged the opposite direction, to his right.
The penalty was called when Luka Modric, the 40-year-old midfielder who prolonged his Croatian record by appearing in his fifth World Cup, kicked Noni Madueke within the thigh.
Kane matched Lineker’s mark when the Bayern Munich striker easily beat Livakovic with a robust header off a corner kick from Declan Rice. Kane has 81 international goals.
“We scored two goals that were good actions and good situations, but they were too little,” Croatia coach Zlatco Dalic said through an interpreter. “England was very difficult, (we) also need to be strong on the defensive side.”
Bellingham almost immediately had one other great scoring likelihood after the Real Madrid player’s seventh international goal. Livakovic made that save and a couple of half-dozen more in a matter of minutes during a frenetic English attack.
“We could have scored probably three goals in that 20-minute spell coming out (after halftime),” Kane said. “In the long run, we just had an excessive amount of for a fantastic team that may probably go far within the tournament themselves.”
Musa scored the primary World Cup goal for an energetic player from Dallas of Major League Soccer, which plays its home games about 40 miles from AT&T Stadium.
The retractable-roof venue that’s home to the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys is giving World Cup fans an air-conditioned reprieve from the muggy Texas heat, this time for white-clad English fans and Croatian supporters who were mostly wearing their country’s familiar red-and-white checkered uniforms, not the blue kits the players had on.
Musa tracked a header from Ivan Perisic and put a one-timer past Jordan Pickford, who was also beaten within the thirty sixth minute by Baturina. That shot into the left corner ticked off Pickford’s hand.
Bukayo Saka’s pass left loads of room for Rashford because the Barcelona player entered the penalty area, faked a shot together with his left foot and scored his nineteenth international goal together with his right.
“I loved the second half, all of it,” Tuchel said. “I encouraged them to go for it. To play with more courage, to be brave, to be ourselves. And like I said, I loved their response.”
Your subscription couldn’t be saved. Please try again.
Your subscription has been successful.
England next plays Ghana in Foxborough, Massachusetts, in Group L on Tuesday, the identical day Croatia plays Panama in Toronto.