Harry Kane netted twice to equal England’s men’s World Cup goals record, while Jude Bellingham added a second-half goal as England secured a 4-2 victory over Croatia in a rematch of their 2018 semifinal. Martin Baturina and Petar Musa each scored for Croatia, with Musa’s goal coming on the final play of the first half to level the score.
The stalemate dissolved quickly after halftime. Bellingham capitalized on a precise long pass, evading defenders to slot a shot past Dominik Livakovic and into the net. Marcus Rashford extended England’s lead in the 85th minute, sealing the win.
Kane, the 2018 Golden Boot winner, now shares the English World Cup scoring record with Gary Lineker (10 goals) and joins David Beckham as the only players to score in three World Cups. His first goal came via a retaken penalty after a VAR review revealed Livakovic had stepped off the goal line during the initial attempt. His second was a powerful header from Declan Rice’s corner.
Croatia’s Musa, who plays for MLS’s FC Dallas, converted a one-timer from Ivan Perisic’s header, while Baturina’s first-half strike deflected off Jordan Pickford’s hand into the left corner. The result ended Croatia’s six-game unbeaten run in World Cup group stages since 2014.
