Fifa World Cup: six of the best for England as Harry Kane puts Panama to the sword
England striker puts Gareth Southgate’s men in the knockout stages after convincing win over World Cup debutants
Kane, who now has five goals in Russia, leapfrogged Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku in the race for the Golden Boot as the Central Americans were sent packing along with Tunisia.
Belgium and England – who meet in Kaliningrad on Thursday to battle it out for top spot – both have six points after two games and are level on goal difference and goals scored.
England recorded their biggest-ever victory at a World Cup despite the sapping heat in Nizhny Novogrod, playing with youthful zest and imagination against their disappointing opponents.
Two penalties from Kane and two goals from John Stones, plus an impressive strike from Jesse Lingard, gave England an unassailable 5-0 lead at half-time.
Kane completed his hat-trick in the 62nd minute and was then taken off by Gareth Southgate, who was looking to preserve the energy of his captain with tougher challenges ahead.
Felipe Baloy, 37, scored the first-ever goal for Panama at a World Cup to narrow the gap but it could not mask the vast gulf in quality between the two sides.