Riga, Oct 15 (IANS) Harry Kane netted a brace as England sealed its place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a commanding 5-0 win over Latvia in the qualifiers.

Coach Thomas Tuchel made two changes from the side that defeated Wales, with Myles Lewis-Skelly coming in for Marc Guehi and captain Kane returning from injury to lead the attack.

The Three Lions thought they had taken an early lead when Kane found the net inside two minutes, but the flag was raised for offside. Moments later, the Bayern Munich striker missed a golden opportunity from close range, reports Xinhua.

England eventually broke through in the 26th minute when Anthony Gordon cut inside from the left and curled a fine effort into the far corner.

Kane soon made amends for his earlier misses, striking twice before halftime, first with a composed finish from the edge of the box in the 44th minute, and then a penalty deep into stoppage time following a VAR-confirmed handball.

Kane’s double saw him surpass Nat Lofthouse’s record for multi-goal games for England, having now scored more than once in a match on 13 occasions.

Latvia’s defensive resilience crumbled in the 58th minute when Maksims Tonisevs conceded an own goal, before England substitute Eberechi Eze added the finishing touch late on, drilling home a low shot to complete the rout.

With the win, England maintains its perfect record in six qualifiers, sitting top of Group K with 18 points, seven ahead of second-placed Albania, confirming its ticket to next year’s World Cup with two matches remaining.

Also in Group K, Serbia cruised past Andorra 3-1 to sit third in the group with 10 points.

In Group F, Portugal missed the chance to qualify early after Dominik Szoboszlai’s stoppage-time strike earned Hungary a 2-2 draw, while Ireland edged 10-man Armenia 1-0. Portugal leads the group with 10 points, followed by Hungary on five.

In Group I, Mateo Retegui scored twice as Italy sailed past Israel 3-0, and Estonia and Moldova played out a 1-1 draw.

Meanwhile, Spain dominated Bulgaria 4-0 in Group E, with Mikel Merino’s two headers sealing a comfortable victory for the reigning European champions, while Türkiye outplayed Georgia 4-1.

–IANS

bc/