Jude Bellingham Hands Harry Kane the Crown After England’s Wild Mexico Win

England just pulled off something that barely seems real. They went into Estadio Azteca, a place where Mexico had lost only twice in 89 competitive matches since 1969, and walked out with a 3-2 win. It wasn’t pretty. It was chaotic, gutsy, and borderline insane. But it happened.

Harry Kane scored another penalty to push his World Cup tally to six goals. After the match, Kane posted a photo montage from the night on Instagram with a caption that read: “It doesn’t get much better than that! Guts and courage from every single member of this squad. Proud of this team!” And Jude Bellingham replied with a single crown emoji. That’s it. Just a crown. But in context, it says everything.

Kane’s Season Is Almost Unbelievable

The 32-year-old Bayern Munich striker now has 73 goals this season for club and country. That’s the second-highest single-year total ever. Only Lionel Messi’s 91-goal 2012 sits above it. Kane came into this World Cup still chasing his first major international trophy. Thomas Tuchel built this England team around him, starting Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka on the wings with Bellingham playing off the striker. The whole idea is to let Kane drop deep, use that ridiculous soccer IQ, and let the runners do the rest. So far, it’s working.

The Real Hero Was Bellingham

Even with Kane’s crown moment, Bellingham was the man of the match. He scored the first two goals for England. He also made a goalline clearance in the final minutes when Mexico was pressing for an equalizer. That’s the kind of stuff that wins tournaments. After England went up 2-0, they let Mexico back in. Jarell Quansah got a red card in the 54th minute, and suddenly it was 2-1. But Gordon won a penalty in the 60th, Kane buried it, and it was 3-1. Then Raul Jimenez scored a penalty in the 69th to make it 3-2. Mexico kept coming, but England held on.

England now faces Norway for a spot in the semifinals. They’ve got Kane rolling. They’ve got Bellingham playing out of his mind. And they’ve got that weird, ugly resilience that good tournament teams somehow find. It might not be pretty, but it’s working.