Kane brace rescues England vs DR Congo ahead of Mexico test
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- Harry Kane scored twice to rescue England against 46th-ranked DR Congo, whose surprise 4-4-2 formation — rather than their usual 5-3-2 — exploited England's high-press vulnerabilities by using the goalkeeper plus three central players to outnumber Kane and Bellingham
- DR Congo's build-up structure mirrored Mexico's 4-3-3 approach of using width and rotations to pull opponents out of passing lanes, making the match a tactical rehearsal for the last-16 clash at Azteca Stadium
- Tuchel's preferred 'wide units' — a triangle of full-back, attacking midfielder and winger — struggled against DR Congo's 4-4-2, continuing a pattern seen in group-stage matches against Ghana and Panama
- Declan Rice was moved to right-back with Jude Bellingham shifted to a left-sided midfield role he thrived in against Panama, freeing Bellingham to dribble and run in behind; the equaliser came from a Saka-Eze-Rice combination exploiting the new rotations
- Mexico have yet to concede a goal in the World Cup under boss Javier Aguirre, a markedly tougher proposition than DR Congo and one England must solve either by dropping into a compact block or committing fully to a man-oriented press
- Eberechi Eze emerged as the only England player offering a different dynamic after coming on at a hydration break, with Tuchel acknowledging the underwhelming form of his wide units and injuries to his full-backs
Why it matters: Tuchel must choose between a compact block or a fully committed high press against Mexico — England sat in between the two against a team ranked 46th in the world, and Mexico's unbeaten, zero-conceded tournament run under Aguirre at the intimidating Azteca leaves far less margin for the same indecision, with Rice's positional tweak and Eze's introduction the only attacking answers that emerged from the DR Congo scare.
