Harry Kane struck twice while Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford were also on target as England overcame a spirited challenge to secure a 4-2 victory in Dallas, with the captain crediting manager Thomas Tuchel’s half-time team talk for the turnaround.
England had surrendered leads twice in a lively first half and went into the break level at 2-2, but a more aggressive approach after the interval proved decisive as the Three Lions opened their World Cup campaign with three points.
“I thought it was a game of two halves. In the first half, we were OK,” Kane told ITV after the match. “We were really disappointed to concede in the way we did. I thought we dropped off.
“Credit to the manager, he gave us a speech at half-time and said if we lose, we lose in our way, and I think we saw that in the way we came out in the second half. We went full gas and they couldn’t live with it.”
Elsewhere, Colombia made a winning return to the World Cup after missing the 2022 edition, defeating tournament debutants Uzbekistan 3-1 at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City to move to the top of Group K.
Crystal Palace defender Daniel Munoz opened the scoring with an acrobatic volley from a Luis Diaz pass after the former Liverpool forward had earlier struck the post. Uzbekistan, coached by Italy’s World Cup-winning defender Fabio Cannavaro, restored parity through Abbosbek Fayzullaev shortly after the hour mark.
However, Colombia quickly regained the lead through Diaz, whose effort squeezed past goalkeeper Utkir Yusupov despite the shot-stopper getting both hands to the ball. Substitute Jaminton Campaz sealed victory late on, although Uzbekistan continued to threaten, with Jakhongir Urozov hitting the crossbar in the closing stages.
The goal marked Diaz’s first at a World Cup and added another milestone to a remarkable year for the Bayern Munich winger, who joined the German champions in a £65.5 million move after helping Liverpool win the Premier League title during the 2024-25 season.
In Toronto, Ghana denied Panama a historic first World Cup point thanks to a dramatic winner from Caleb Yirenkyi deep into stoppage time. With the game seemingly heading for a draw, Brandon Thomas-Asante surged down the left flank before setting up Yirenkyi, who tapped home in the 95th minute.
The result was a cruel blow for Panama, who had matched the four-time African champions throughout the contest. Cecilio Waterman nearly put the Central Americans ahead inside two minutes, only for Lawrence Ati Zigi to tip his effort over the crossbar.
Cristian Martinez came close again after the break, while Panama goalkeeper Orlando Mosquera joined the attack late on and helped create one final chance that ultimately fell safely into the hands of Ghana substitute goalkeeper Benjamin Asare.
The Black Stars will next face Group L leaders England in Boston, while Panama will seek to end their winless World Cup record against Croatia.
Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo’s bid to become the first player to score in six different World Cups suffered a setback as Portugal were held to a 1-1 draw by DR Congo in Houston.
The 41-year-old captain struggled to influence proceedings and remained on the pitch for the entire match, prompting criticism of coach Roberto Martinez from former Premier League striker Chris Sutton.
As Goncalo Ramos replaced Vitinha in the 83rd minute, Sutton questioned the decision to leave Ronaldo on the field.
