FIFA World Cup: England crash out of World Cup as Harry Kane misses penalty
After scoring a penalty, Harry Kane also missed one as England was eliminated from the World Cup after a 2-1 defeat to France
England captain Harry Kane missed a key penalty in the second half.After reaching the 2018 semi-finals and finishing second at last year's European Championship, Gareth Southgate's men dreamed of an exciting semi-final against Morocco.
Aurelien Tchouameni's early goal dashed England's hopes, but Kane equalised from the penalty spot to equal Wayne Rooney's goal-scoring record for the national team.
France's record goalscorer Olivier Giroud restored the world champions' lead, and that was the winning goal after Kane failed to convert a late penalty for a 2-1 quarter-final exit.
England has a long history of costly penalty misses, but usually, these problems occur in penalty shootouts, as in their painful defeat in the Euro 2020 final to Italy last summer.
Southgate still has a contract until the next European Championship, and this could be his last game at a World Cup. On the night, his players bounced back impressively after falling behind for the first time in Qatar.
Tchouameni's brilliant shot from a distance flew into the net after just 17 minutes, after a foul on Bukayo Saka in the opening stages had gone unpunished.
An appeal for a penalty following a foul on Kane by Dayot Upamecano was also ignored after the VAR concluded the decision had been made outside the penalty area. Still, Southgate's side heeded his advice to remain calm and robust.
England deservedly equalised when Tchouameni knocked over Saka early in the second half. Kane beat Hugo Lloris to draw level with Rooney's record of 53 goals.
Giroud put Didier Deschamps' side back in front at Al Khor. Still, a clumsy foul by Theo Hernandez on Mason Mount led to another penalty after referee Wilton Sampaio checked the sideline monitor.
However, Kane scored into the Al-Bayt Stadium stands rather than the net, meaning England will have to head home rather than prepare for a third successive semi-final in a major competition.
Both coaches fielded unchanged teams at Al Khor, and it was a subdued start to a game that began with a stunning 17th-minute goal after Upamecano got away with a foul on Saka.
France broke down the left, and Kylian Mbappe burst inside, picked up a back pass and headed over a challenge from Declan Rice.
England managed to get players behind the ball, but the midfield did not come out in time to stop Tchouameni, who fired a brilliant laser shot from about 25 yards.
It was an early slap in the face, but Southgate's side responded impressively. Lloris could keep out a shot from Kane before Upamecano breathed a sigh of relief.
The French centre-back had caught the England captain, but the VAR ruled that the contact had taken place outside the penalty area.
England continued unfazed. Kane failed to beat Lloris with a shot from 25 yards, and Jude Bellingham failed with a brilliant half-volley early in the second half.
Southgate's side were rewarded for their excellent work in the 54th minute.
Saka was brought down after a foul by Tchouameni, at which point referee Sampaio pointed directly to the spot. A long delay followed, but Kane held his nerve and sent Tottenham's teammate Lloris the wrong way.
Pickford prevented Adrien Rabiot from immediately putting France back in front before England continued to press.
Lloris saved from low shots by Saka and Kane before Harry Maguire directed a free-kick with a header at the far post.
England had the most significant chances but could thank Pickford for keeping the score level when Giroud volleyed a Dembele header across the goal.
The veteran did not take long to get on the end of it, as Griezmann whipped in a beautiful cross that Giroud headed into the net from close range after a light touch from Maguire.
Mount had already been preparing for his substitution and made an immediate impact when he was finally substituted.
After Hernandez inexplicably knocked over the substitute, VAR informed referee Sampaio to look at the monitor. After watching the video footage, the Brazilian pointed to the spot while fans chanted, "You are not fit to be a referee."
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🔢 PLAYER RATINGS following England's dramatic World Cup exit!<br><br>🤔 Do you agree...<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FIFAWorldCup?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FIFAWorldCup</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Qatar2022?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Qatar2022</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ENGFRA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ENGFRA</a></p>— Planet Sport (@PlanetSportcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/PlanetSportcom/status/1601712703587901452?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 10, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Kane's goal could have broken Rooney's record and given new hope, but instead, he missed his penalty in the 84th minute.
It was a punch in the gut that England could not respond to. It was an evening that ended with substitute Marcus Rashford's free-kick landing on the roof of the net 10 minutes into stoppage time.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Heartbreaking once again, but no shame in losing to an excellent French team and congratulations to them. There was so little to choose between the two sides. This fine young <a href="https://twitter.com/England?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@England</a> team gave their all and will only get better. Their time will come.</p>— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) <a href="https://twitter.com/GaryLineker/status/1601683553880018946?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 10, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Another impressive tournament performance, another missed opportunity for England.