Tenman England Hang On To 3 2 Win Against Mexico

. England’s chaotic 3-2 victory over Mexico at the Azteca belonged emphatically to the latter. Lurching end to end, swinging violently between control and bedlam, it witnessed three goals in six first-half minutes, a straight red, a stunning save, a goalpost rebound, two penalties and enough momentum shifts to fill an entire knockout tie. And at the centre of it all stood Jude Bellingham.

By the final whistle, Bellingham had scored twice, produced a match-altering defensive intervention, and somehow managed to look like England’s most influential player at both ends of the pitch. On an evening when everything else felt unpredictable, Bellingham became the one constant.

England stood to gain from it. And they were in desperate need of that too, given how they had barely enjoyed the ball for the first 35 minutes. With Mexico monopolising possession, England were content to absorb pressure, leaving Jordan Pickford patiently waiting for an opening. By half-time, England’s possession stood at 37%, but it didn’t matter since they needed only one transition to catch Mexico on the counter.

The breakthrough was beautifully ruthless. Raul Jimenez couldn’t reach a lofted delivery into the England penalty area and Pickford immediately latched on to it. His throw released Declan Rice before Bukayo Saka accelerated into the open area down the right. Harry Kane played Mexico by dragging away their defenders as Saka’s cross travelled untouched through the six-yard box to arrive in sync with a completely unmarked Bellingham at the far post.

Before Mexico could properly process the setback, England struck again. This time Elliot Anderson won possession high up the pitch, Anthony Gordon shifting the ball into Bellingham’s path as he quickly exchanged passes with Kane. The return from Kane split the defence, allowing Bellingham to calmly finish from close. With those two goals, Mexico had suddenly gone from controlling the contest to chasing it.

Yet the game refused to remain one-sided for long. Four minutes later, Roberto Alvarado whipped a dangerous free-kick into England’s penalty area. After a fortunate ricochet, Julian Quinones reacted well to smash an instinctive volley beyond Pickford to reduce the deficit. Mexico had finally found a way in, and England had less control of the momentum than they had hoped for.

It reduced further when Pickford was forced into a full-stretched save to claw away Jimenez’s powerful header. From the resulting corner, the ball dropped in the way of Cesar Montes at the far post but this is where Bellingham turned saviour, stretching out his boot to kick the ball away before Montes could take aim. It was the sort of intervention usually forgotten if the attacking highlights dominate the post-match discussion. In this game though, it felt equally significant.

If the first half had been frantic, the second somehow found a higher gear. England nearly restored their two-goal cushion immediately after the restart when Nico O’Reilly’s sweetly struck volley cannoned off the upright with goalkeeper Raul Rangel beaten. But then came the moment that threatened to unravel everything.

Jarell Quanshah’s wild challenge on Jesus Gallardo prompted protests from the Mexico bench, prompting the referee to consult VAR and issue a straight red. Down to 10 men, with more than half an hour’s game still left, England were properly stretched. This is where they found another decisive moment. Kane was again central to this, having been brought down by Rangel after bursting through Mexico’s defence. He didn’t complicate it. No stutter, no hesitation, Kane just ran in and drove a powerful strike into the corner despite the goalkeeper diving in the right direction.

It was a goal that altered the emotional landscape as much as the scoreline. Mexico still enjoyed territory and possession, but England had the cushion to defend with greater structure despite their numerical disadvantage. Jimenez did close the gap in the 69th minute after converting a penalty given when Gutierrez was brought down by a Kane challenge, but England kept resisting extraordinarily.

It wasn’t easy, considering Mexico were given 11 minutes of added time to level the game. There were moments of quality, controversy, desperation and nerve in almost every minute of that phase. But England intervened, blocked and cleared the ball like a team possessed to bury the ghosts of Azteca. With the final whistle, England had only 33.2% possession—their lowest in a World Cup match on record since 1966—while their 48 clearances were their most since the 54 made against Belgium in 1990. But in broader memory this World Cup contest will go on to be remembered as a game that never paused for breath.

Somshuvra Laha is a sports journalist with over 11 years' experience writing on cricket, football and other sports. He has covered the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, the 2016 ICC World Twenty20, cricket tours of South Africa, West Indies and Bangladesh and the 2010 Commonwealth Games for Hindustan Times.Read More