England eliminates Mexico 3-2 in World Cup in possible game of the tournament
Altitude dominated the build-up analysis of the England-Mexico matchup. It came down to England’s attitude.
The Three Lions came away with a gritty 3-2 win over co-hosts Mexico in the World Cup Round of 16 on Sunday, as El Tri bows out at a stadium they rarely lose in.
With Canada losing to Morocco on Saturday, the U.S. men’s national team is the last host nation remaining. The Stars and Stripes meet Belgium on Monday.
England’s main lineup concern involved its right-back spot as Reece James and Djed Spence weren’t fully fit enough to start. That meant makeshift defender Jarrell Quansah had to slot over.
Mexico, meanwhile, kept 17-year-old Gilberto Mora in midfield after two straight stellar performances as a starter vs. Czechia and Ecuador.
El Tri had the edge on the ball for the opening half hour, as England seemed OK to sit back and defend to preserve their legs in the altitude.
The first goal came against the run of play. Declan Rice drove down the field in very few touches, then swung it wide to Bukayo Saka on the right flank. Saka, dealing with an Achilles issue, took on his man before clipping a ball to the back post.
Harry Kane was too ahead, but Jude Bellingham came flying in to head home in the 36th minute.
Bellingham didn’t take long to make it a brace.
After Mora was stripped near midfield, England broke out in attack again. This time, Kane slipped it into the box from the right side as Bellingham came rumbling in to tuck it away in the 38th minute.
England couldn’t hang onto a clean sheet before halftime, however.
In the 42nd minute, a free kick from the left flank saw a deflected ball come into the path of Julian Quinones in the box. Mexico’s left winger had no problems drilling it past Jordan Pickford.
Mexico then dominated from there and put heavy pressure on Pickford’s goal, but England held on to maintain a slight lead at the break.
The momentum then further went Mexico’s way in the 54th minute. Quansah was sent off with a red card after being adjudged to have made a high challenge on the ball.
Quansah got the ball first in his slide-tackle attempt, but had studs up in the follow through upon VAR review. That led to Saka coming off for defender John Stones as England embraced a more defensive approach.
However, it would be England that scored next.
On a long goal kick, Pickford’s ball came off Kane and into the path of left winger Anthony Gordon. Gordon brought the ball away from goalie Raul Rangel in the box, but was clearly tripped up for a penalty. Kane stepped up and buried it in the 60th minute, as Rangel went the right way.
But Kane couldn’t escape the drama. Less than 10 minutes later, Kane gave away a penalty when attempting to clear the ball. He clipped midfielder Brian Gutierrez from behind upon VAR review.
Raul Jimenez, who had a good record vs. Pickford coming into the game, made his stutter-step effort in the 69th minute to make it 3-2.
England had to make more defensive substitutions down the stretch as Mexico did the opposite to salvage its World Cup chances.
But after 11 minutes of added time, the breakthrough could not be found. England defended its box superbly to answer some questions about a possible shaky unit. Pickford commanded his box brilliantly while every player put their respective bodies on the line.
It’s also the second straight close affair for an England side that is getting severely tested. In the Round of 32, a late Kane brace was the decider to beat DR Congo 2-1.
England ended the game with 1.55 expected goals across six shots, with five on target, per data-tracking platform FotMob. Mexico, for comparison’s sake, had 1.94 on 20 shots, but only five were on target.
The Three Lions will now meet Erling Haaland and Norway in the quarterfinals on Saturday, July 11. The game will be held in Miami. Haaland scored a brace to eliminate Brazil 2-1 earlier Sunday and has familiarity with England’s Premier League stars.
El Tri, meanwhile, fell at the Round of 16 hurdle once again. Despite beating Ecuador in the new Round of 32, Mexico has not advanced past this stage since hosting the World Cup in 1986.
Mexico made the Round of 16 in each World Cup from 1994 to 2018 before being grouped in 2022. Mora will have to lead the change by 2030 if that hurdle is to be crossed.
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