England’s national team has often pulled at the heartstrings of its fans in the nearly 60 years since it last won an international tournament.
David Baddiel, Frank Skinner and The Lightning Seeds’ 1996 hit “Three Lions,” released ahead of England hosting Euro 1996, discusses the “30 years of hurt” fans experienced between then and the country’s first World Cup win in 1966. In the 30 years following the tune’s release, disappointment has only continued to plague the Three Lions.
For 67 minutes of the team’s World Cup round of 32 match against Congo, it seemed another failure was imminent.
When least expected, up stepped bagsman Harry Kane.
The country’s all-time goal scorer added two more to his tally (84), pulling the Three Lions away from Les Léopards in a 2-1 thriller at Atlanta Stadium. The comeback effort thrust England away from what would have been their worst World Cup finish since 2014 and into a date with Mexico on Sunday.
Father-and-son duo, Simon and Daniel Eaves attended Wednesday’s thrilling match. The pair told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution after the match that the consensus among England fans near them was the same:
Kane is inevitable.
“You don’t really see the angle he sees,” Daniel Eaves told the AJC. “He just smashes it into the top corner, or he heads it into the bottom corner and it works out for us. We’re grateful to have him.”
The 32-year-old striker entered the first World Cup on North American soil since 1994 on elite form. He logged an astounding 64 goals and eight assists for club Bayern Munich en route to his second Bundesliga title and a Champions League semifinal appearance.
Kane has delivered for England on the international stage several times in his career. Last time out, he delivered just one goal in the knockout stage of Euro 2024.
England coach Thomas Tuchel has deployed three different wing combinations in the World Cup as he looks for a permanent solution. Still, the star striker has shone, scoring in four of the team’s five matches.
“Today, having a player like that shows why we are in this stage of the competition,” Three Lions fan Tim May told the AJC.
It is unclear whether Kane will continue his sublime start to the tournament, considering challenges with altitude and a raucous atmosphere at Mexico City Stadium await him and the Three Lions on Sunday.
Still, you never know when he could pull something out of the top drawer.
“It’s a level of technical competence that is amazing,” Simon Eaves told the AJC of Kane’s goals. “To do it in those moments is really quite monumental. I played enough to know I couldn’t do it in the first place, but to do it in those moments is really super special.”
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