England’s World Cup Journey Continues

By Karan Malhotra — 13 July 2026 — 4 min read

England’s World Cup Journey Continues

England captain Harry Kane believes the team possesses an untapped potential, stating they “have another level we can reach” in their pursuit of a World Cup title. The Three Lions secured a 2-1 victory over Norway in extra time, setting up a semi-final encounter against Argentina on Wednesday in Atlanta.

Following the quarter-final match, manager Thomas Tuchel expressed dissatisfaction with England’s performance. He described the team as having been “sloppy,” making “a lot of technical mistakes,” and not being “fast enough, not repetitive enough.” Tuchel also commented that the team “got lucky” in their win.

Kane, who has scored six goals in the current tournament, is England‘s joint top goalscorer. He suggested that Tuchel’s frustrations stemmed from the team not replicating their training ground form during the match. Kane acknowledged that while they are playing against strong opposition, the team knows they can perform better.

“When he sees us train and sees the closeness of us and sees what we can do, especially with the players we have, the way we attack, our one-on-ones and the skills, he just wants to see that version of us,” Kane said. He added, “He knows as much as anyone that it’s not as simple as that, we’re playing against good opposition and good teams.”

The captain emphasized that the team has shown glimpses of their capability but has not yet achieved the full control they desire. Despite this, he highlighted the positive aspect of reaching a semi-final while still feeling there is room for improvement. “We’ll be playing against one of the best teams in the world in the semi-final, so the most pleasing thing is we are in a semi-final and still feel we can improve,” Kane noted.

Controversy in the Quarter-Final

The match against Norway was not without its controversial moments. Norway head coach Ståle Solbakken raised concerns about the build-up to Jude Bellingham‘s equalizer. Solbakken asserted that the ball struck an overhead camera cable before the goal, an incident that occurred late in the first half of Norway‘s FIFA World Cup quarter-final defeat.

The incident involved Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland launching a goal kick that appeared to hit a suspended camera wire. England quickly gained possession, and Bellingham subsequently scored to level the match. Both Nyland and Solbakken appealed to the referee, believing play should have been stopped, but their protests were dismissed, and the goal stood.

Television replays reportedly indicated contact between the ball and the cable. However, FIFA later maintained that there was “no evidence that the ball touched the overhead wire and changed the movement of the ball.” Solbakken explained that the referee was unaware of any contact and received no message indicating it had occurred.

“Since FIFA says that there was no touch, I can’t do anything about it,” Solbakken stated. He added, “But the ball fell down straight in front of the bench, so it did. Everyone saw what happened. I think it’s pretty clear that it did. it was a strange thing.” Under the Laws of the Game, if officials determine the ball has touched an outside object like an overhead cable, play should be stopped and restarted with a dropped ball.

Despite his disappointment, Solbakken chose not to dwell on the incident, instead commending his players for their efforts throughout the tournament. He described the situation as bizarre but acknowledged it as part of football. The Norway boss also felt the unexpected trajectory of the ball after the alleged contact led to confusion among his players at a crucial moment.

A close-up picture showing some of the World Cup draw balls from December Credit: bbc.com

Team Reactions and Future Outlook

While Kane largely agreed with Tuchel‘s assessment, Bellingham, who scored in England‘s match against Norway, offered a different perspective. Bellingham highlighted the difficulty of playing in such conditions against a strong Norway team, which included players like Erling Haaland, Martin Ødegaard, Antonio Nusa, and Alexander Sørloth.

“It’s difficult out there, it’s a tough shift,” Bellingham said after the match. “All the players have put in a tough shift. My thoughts and appreciation goes to the players out there.” He also suggested that Tuchel might not fully appreciate the challenges of playing against such opponents in those conditions.

England, who were World Cup champions in 1966, have now reached the semi-finals for the fourth time in their history. Their previous semi-final appearances saw losses to West Germany in 1990 and Croatia in 2018. The team also experienced a defeat in the European Championship final against Italy on penalties at Wembley in 2021.

Kane, a striker for Bayern Munich, reflected on the team’s recent successes, calling it an “extremely successful era” for the national team. He emphasized the desire to “get over the line,” referring to winning a major trophy, which he described as the “missing piece.”

“We’re knocking on the door. We’re getting to these semi-finals and finals. It’s a big week,” Kane stated. He highlighted the team’s dedication and desire for the badge over the past six weeks and stressed the need for an even greater push in the coming days. England‘s next challenge is their semi-final match against Argentina on Wednesday.