MEXICO CITY (AP) 鈥� Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane carried England to the quarterfinals, overcoming a raucous crowd, the elevation of and a man disadvantage in the second half to beat Mexico in a 3-2 thriller on Sunday night.
In the same stadium where England fell victim to Diego Maradona鈥檚 Hand of God goal in the 1986 World Cup against Argentina, it was the foot of Kane that gave the nation redemption 40 years later.
鈥淚 am just proud of the mentality and the attitude … round of 16 it is a moment in tournaments when you find a way to win and we did it with pure mentality and heart,鈥� England coach Thomas Tuchel said. 鈥淲e overcame every obstacle that was thrown our way.鈥�
Bellingham scored two goals 98 seconds apart in the first half. And six minutes after Jarell Quansah was sent off, to restore England’s two-goal lead.
England moves on to face Norway on Saturday in Miami Gardens, Florida, for a spot in the semifinals.
鈥淚t was a crazy game. We had to fight,鈥� Kane said, his voice hoarse. 鈥淚 can’t really talk, but the occasion, the team, everything against us, we found a way.鈥�
Bellingham stunned the crowd of 80,824 at a venue where Mexico was unbeaten in 10 World Cup matches, including three this tournament, when he scored on a header in the 36th minute and again in the 38th on a pass from Kane.
鈥淲e鈥檝e done something incredible tonight, no doubt about it, and we鈥檒l enjoy it. And we鈥檒l sing songs until we lose our voices on the plane and whatnot, but we鈥檒l have a couple of days recovering, then it鈥檚 straight back to business in terms of facing Norway,鈥� Bellingham said.
Juli谩n Qui帽ones scored for El Tri in the 42nd minute, and the game appeared to turn in Mexico鈥檚 favor when Quansah was shown a red card in the 54th for a dangerous foul on Jes煤s Gallardo.
But England was awarded a penalty for a challenge by Mexico goalkeeper Ra煤l Rangel, and Kane converted for his sixth goal of this tournament and 14th of his World Cup career, matching Gerd M眉ller of West Germany for fifth on the scoring list. Kane sits one behind Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbapp茅 and Erling Haaland in the Golden Boot race.
Kane then committed a foul that made him the first player since at least 1966 to score and concede a penalty in a World Cup game. Ra煤l Jim茅nez converted the kick with a stutter-step approach to move El Tri within 3-2.
鈥淔orty, 50 minutes with 10 men 鈥� even on sea level it鈥檚 almost impossible to overcome but we did it. We did it in altitude,鈥� Tuchel said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e almost too exhausted to celebrate. It鈥檚 just beautiful that players on that kind of level just give everything for the win and for the country and for that shirt.鈥�
Mexico attacked relentlessly over the final 21 minutes, plus 11 minutes of stoppage time, but goalkeeper Jordan Pickford and England’s defenders held steady.
鈥淭his is probably one of the biggest England wins in a while, probably the biggest one I can remember as a fan or player,鈥� Bellingham said. 鈥淭he best night of my England career.鈥�
Midfielder Jordan Henderson was taken to a hospital after the match with a wrist injury, Tuchel said. He was hurt when he tumbled over an advertising board during the postgame celebration.
鈥淚 have mixed feelings; I am sad because Jordan injured his wrist and it is quite serious. It just does not fit with the evening that Jordan is not with us,鈥� Tuchel added. 鈥淚 do not know the procedure; the doctor told me that he is in the hospital.鈥�
Mexico has not reached the World Cup quarterfinals since hosting in 1986. Since then, it has lost in the round of 16 eight times, failed to advance past the group stage in 2022 and was disqualified from the 1990 tournament.
鈥淒reaming and falling like this hurts a lot, but the players should leave with their heads held high,鈥� Mexico coach Javier Aguirre said. 鈥淭hey left everything on the pitch, but today it just wasn鈥檛 meant to be. The fans had high hopes, and we couldn鈥檛 get the job done and give them another night of joy.鈥�
It was Mexico鈥檚 third competitive loss at Azteca, which opened in 1966, after a pair of 2-1 defeats in World Cup qualifiers, to Costa Rica in 2001 and to Honduras in 2013.
The stadium sits 7,300 feet (2,200 meters) above sea level and England’s travel schedule gave it no opportunity to get used to the altitude. Mexico’s passionate fans to disrupt players’ sleep, and the start of the match was delayed an hour because of a thunderstorm.
No matter. England is on to the quarterfinals as it seeks its first title since 1966, and its outnumbered fans continued to with Oasis’ 鈥淲onderwall.鈥�
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