England labour to World Cup victory against Democratic Republic of Congo.

 England labour to World Cup victory against Democratic Republic of Congo.

This was never likely to be an easy watch for the thousands of England fans who had flown to the the USA for an expedition they must have assumed would be plain sailing. But this was painful, unsightly, unseemly, a gauche, twisted, distorted and, ultimately disjointed mess of a performance in their round of 16 World Cup match against the Democratic Republic of Congo. In fact, by the end of the game England must have been craving a visit to Hollywood, Los Angeles, California anything to numb the discomfort of this awful charade of a match for Thomas Tuchel's hearty, battle hardened warriors. 

Now in theory, England should have fully recovered from the fiasco that was Ghana when nothing happened of any significance, everything seemed to get stuck in a rut and much was lost in the translation. You could hardly blame the weather or the sweltering heat of good old USA because this vast network of the global population weren't complaining so why should England air their grievances when nobody else is. 

England's goal-less draw against Ghana was simply an exercise in futility, a match going nowhere and lacking in any semblance of direction or purpose. Somehow you begin to wonder whether even England know where they're going since none of us can really get a handle as to why they continue to struggle after their opening group match in any World Cup. Perhaps somebody turned off the electricity that everybody must have felt pulsing through England when Croatia were swotted away almost dismissively. And even then it looked like a labour of love. 

And so we thank our lucky stars that the DR Congo finally wilted and buckled in the sweltering heat of Atlanta. For much of the game there was a nimble footed athleticism and sensual suppleness about their passing that occasionally reminded you of a Brazil, Germany, France, Spain or Argentina. This may be a gross exaggeration but then England were heading towards the exit door of this World Cup, as Congo bravely held onto a slender lead with just over a quarter of an hour left. England, though, did redeem themselves and got out of jail. So they found the keys to escape incarceration and England were saved by the bell. 

So here we are and the story so far is a progress in work. Against Croatia, England were adventurous, fearless, uninhibited, carefree, expansive and always on the front foot. Although they were hauled back to reality after taking the lead when Croatia were quite clearly not looking, sloppiness and defensive negligence brought the game level at 2-2. By now Harry Kane had found his coat of many colours and suddenly re-captured the devastating goal scoring form that Bayern Munich supporters are now revelling in. 

By the time Brian Cipenga had opened up a corridor of space on the far side of England's gaping and exposed defence, Congo must have thought this would be the perfect opportunity to dance the conga. Cipenga rifled home the opening goal for Congo and that was the ultimate warning. When England were simply day dreaming their way through their sterile encounter with Ghana, most of us were beginning to think they had fallen down a metaphorical hole and were trapped in their own tedium. At one point England were reduced to just looking around at themselves in a bewildered trance, locked in chains and just staggering around in a drunken stupor. 

Sometimes England just love to make life so unnecessarily complicated for themselves. Ghana were no push overs admittedly but international football has now proved  to be a much more level playing ground. There are no minnows, tiddlers or mediocrities in world football. But Ghana did seem intent on throwing a stifling blanket over their defence, erecting a huge fortress across their penalty area and then admiring the turrets and portcullis in front of them. They nullified and cancelled out everything England had to offer and were still congratulating themselves quite proudly when the final whistle went. 

But Thomas Tuchel's side once again showed a backbone and resilience that did seem to get stronger with every passing minute. Worryingly, though, it seemed to take ages before the realisation hit them that this was no walk in any park. There was something stodgy, tepid and lukewarm about England, like men trudging through treacle. Their reluctance to move at anything like the speed and accuracy required for a World Cup match against Congo, was embarrassing in the extreme. And so the game moved forward at almost walking pace, pass after pass circulating around the width and length of a pitch at a snail's pace. England were simply clueless and that was distressing. 

At the back Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa, Djed Spence and Nico O'Reilly were forming clear lines of communication and understanding with each other. It did look as though the fashionable presses were being negotiated and all looked on the same page as each other. Mind you, there were one or two smudges in the margins and occasionally it all all looked slightly cumbersome and clumsy. Spence and O' Reilly are maturing quickly at the highest echelons of football but they can be caught out and their positional sense looked as if it needed a compass to help them out. 

Towards the end of the game though England began to get their act together. Their movements had a much more visible stamp of class and assurance. Elliott Anderson, who has now moved to Manchester City, comfortably shunted the ball progressively in between tangles of legs, passing with a smoothness and dainty delicacy that was truly uplifting. Declan Rice now looks an established fixture in the England side and once again he carried the ball into the opposing half as if he'd been doing the same thing for most of his career. Rice is versatility personified, always available in possession and rarely loses the ball. Football comes naturally to him. 

On the flanks Noni Madueke, also for Arsenal, tricked and flicked the ball inside and out of retreating defenders, swaying one way and then another. When Jude Bellingham, Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford were desperately trying to build a successful relationship with each other up front, it was never the one we thought it would be. Bellingham was hugely impressive while Kane looked disturbingly leggy and Rashford still retains the potential to explode from the starting blocks, running menacingly at defenders who think they've just seen a cheetah flying past them. 

Finally, persistent pressure did take its toll on Congo. With minutes to go, the introduction of Anthony Gordon preyed on Congo's nerves. Gordon now became a force of nature. Stationing himself on the wing, Barcelona's new winger and flier, picked up the ball on the edge of the opposition penalty area, sneaked covertly into space before checking back onto his favourite crossing feet.

Gordon chipped a delicious low cross to Kane and the Bayern Munich thrust his neck muscles and headed the ball almost effortlessly past Lionel Mpasi, the DR Congo goalkeeper who heroically stopped and flung his body in the way of everything England could throw at him. Mpasi was simply magnificent but then it all unravelled for the Congo goalkeeper. England were now firmly in the ascendancy. 

In the game's dying embers, England went again for the umpteenth time. After a series of seductive close passing cameos, England scored the decisive winner. A quick passage of short passes around the Congo defence culminated eventually in Kane doing what most would now regard as second nature. He swivelled around his defender in the tightest of spaces, jockeying for position before spinning around and fiercely ramming the ball past Mpasi. The goal billowed in the Congo net and England were through. How simple was that.