Harry Kane celebrated his record-breaking 126th appearance for England with a goal as the Three Lions defeated Croatia 2-1 at Wembley on Thursday to secure a place in the UEFA Nations League quarter-finals.
Chelsea forward Morgan Rogers and captain Kane scored either side of a Croatia equaliser to ensure England finished the encounter with all three points and confirmed their place in the last eight.
The victory came after England had thrashed Croatia 7-0 in Rijeka last month, although the visitors produced a much-improved defensive performance on this occasion.
The hosts started cautiously, with Elliot Anderson firing over in the 16th minute before Croatia’s Josip Misic sent an effort wide.
Rogers broke the deadlock in the 24th minute after a well-worked move involving Kane and Jude Bellingham. The Real Madrid midfielder collected a pass from Kane before directing the ball across the penalty area, where Rogers capitalised on Josko Gvardiol’s defensive error to beat goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic.
England continued to threaten but failed to extend their advantage before the interval.
Croatia drew level shortly before the hour mark after England defender Jarell Quansah made a costly mistake, directing a defensive header towards goalkeeper Jordan Pickford following a corner. Petar Sucic capitalised on the loose ball to score.
However, England restored their lead minutes later when Quansah was pulled back inside the penalty area. Referee Morten Krogh initially waved away the appeals but awarded a penalty after consulting the pitchside monitor following a VAR review.
Kane converted confidently to register his 92nd international goal and extend his record as England’s leading goalscorer.
Croatia pushed for another equaliser, with Nikola Vlasic narrowly missing the target, while England thought they had added a third through James Garner before the goal was ruled out for offside against Bellingham in the build-up.
The match was particularly significant for Kane, who moved clear of former goalkeeper Peter Shilton as England’s outright record appearance-holder with 126 caps.
A giant banner bearing his image and the words ‘England’s Finest’ was displayed at Wembley before kick-off, while Prince William joined Shilton in honouring the captain.
England remain second in Nations League Group A3 behind Spain, who defeated the Czech Republic 2-0 to maintain their position at the top.
Thomas Tuchel’s side will face World Champions Spain in Madrid on Sunday.