FIFA World Cup: Harry Kane double guides England past Tunisia
Volgograd (Russia), June 19 : Captain Harry Kane scored a brace as England overcame Tunisia with a 2-1 victory in their FIFA World Cup Group G campaign opener at the Volgograd Arena here on Monday.
The Tottenham centre-forward gave England the lead in the 11th minute but Ferjani Sassi converted a penalty to pull Tunisia level in the 35th minute. However, Kane headed home off a corner in the 90+1st minute to give England the winning goal.
The North African side had survived an early onslaught and punched above their weight to counter a talented and youthful English team, playing in a 3-4-2-1 formation. Towards the end, Tunisia thought a draw was a fair result and decided to keep it that way until Kane brought out his second strike in the second-half injury time.
England kept it late to seal the win but their overwhelming start nearly blew Tunisia away. England were all over Tunisia, beginning the match in an emphatic manner.
Barely three minutes into the game, Jordan Henderson sent a cross-field ball towards the right side of the Tunisian box for Dele Alli to bring it down before. But his square pass across the goal to Raheem Sterling was half cleared. The rebound fell to Jesse Lingard, whose drive from the 12 yards out was blocked by a outstretched left leg of keeper Mouez Hassen.
Four minutes later, Sterling overcame three defenders from the left byline before rolling the ball across the face of the goal to the right post where Lingard was waiting. But when the pass arrived, it somehow wrong-footed the teenager and bounced off his shins for a goal kick.
However, the energetic English team was not to be denied the lead for very long as a diving Hassen's block off a header from John Stones following a corner fell at the feet of Kane, who easily tapped it home in the 11th minute.
Hassen, who had injured his right shoulder before the goal, had to be substituted with Farouk Ben Mustapha.
After an overwhelming 20 minutes of attacking football, England took the pace of the game and began to pass the ball around. It allowed Tunisia to reorganise, gather their nerves and keep the ball.
They waited for England to make mistakes and one of those from Kyle Walker proved costly. Battling for a cross, Walker put his arm in the face of Tunisia attacker Fakhreddine Ben Youssef as the latter plunged to the ground. Sassi calmly slotted a penalty into the bottom-left corner, past a diving Jordan Pickford in the 35th minute.
Just before the halftime break, England could have regained the lead but Lingard, again was denied, this time by the post. A through-ball put Lindgard in a race with the on-rushing Mustapha. Lingard tapped the ball around the keeper, but the ball rolled off the left post.
The second-half was devoid of any dynamic move from either side. Compared to the pulsating first 45 minutes, the second half saw the teams trade possession back and forth in the midfield.
England coach Southgate rushed in Marcus Rashford, replacing Sterling as they stepped up their attacking mode.
England, lacking creativity, kept testing Tunisia with set-pieces until they surrendered at the death. A corner from the right saw Harry Maguire flick towards the left, only for Kane to head it home at the near post, rejoicing the English camp and their fans.
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Cong 'pocketed' Rs 150 cr per annum from Assam healthcare budget during 15 yrs of rule: Shah
Guwahati (PTI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday alleged that the Congress, during its previous 15 years of rule in Assam, "pocketed" Rs 150 crore per annum from the state healthcare budget.
Inaugurating and laying the foundation stone for healthcare projects worth Rs 2,092 crore in Assam, Shah said the BJP works for affordable healthcare for all sections of society and lauded Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for bringing the state's medical facilities at par with states like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
"Assam's healthcare was in shambles 10 years ago as Congress worked only for the financial health of its leaders' families," he said.
Attacking Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, he said that no Indian supports his acts of "defaming" the country in his bid to oppose the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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He lambasted the Congress for its "shirtless" protest at the recent AI summit in New Delhi and Gandhi for having 'chai-pakora' on the stairs of Parliament House.
"We were also in the opposition and staged protests against the government, but there is a right platform for it," he said.
"Parliament is a sacred seat of democracy. Its stairs should not be used for even dharnas. And Rahul Gandhi was having 'chai-pakora' there. Doesn't he know where to have his breakfast?" asked the Union minister.
Shah inaugurated the Rs 675-crore Pragjyotishpur Medical College and Hospital in Guwahati, at a programme held on its premises.
He also virtually inaugurated two cancer centres at Golaghat and Tinsukia, both under Assam Cancer Care Foundation (ACCF), constructed at a cost of Rs 135 crore each.
Shah virtually laid the foundation stone for super-speciality hospitals at Diphu Medical College and Hospital (Rs 220 crore), Jorhat Medical College and Hospital (Rs 310 crore), and Barpeta Medical College and Hospital (Rs 284 crore).
The foundation stone for a Rs 218-crore Swasthya Bhawan in Guwahati, and the Abhayapuri District Hospital (Rs 115 crore) were also laid by the Union home minister.
Shah arrived here on Saturday evening on a two-day visit to Assam, his fourth visit to the northeastern state in four months.
