Hoarse hero at the Azteca Stadium: Harry Kane draws level with Gerd Müller

At the Azteca Stadium, where the façade exudes footballing history, where Maradona once scored two goals for the ages with the ‘Hand of God’ and his solo run against England, FC Bayern striker Harry Kane wrote a whole new chapter with the Three Lions in the early hours of Monday morning – one full of drama, setbacks and mental fortitude.

Expectations in the Mexican capital had been sky-high. A home match for “El Tri” - a home match at the Azteca, where Mexico had never lost a World Cup match. Since 2013, this fortress had become impregnable in international encounters. Add to that the co-hosts in top form: four matches, four wins, four clean sheets – everything looked set for their first quarter-final appearance since 1986. But then along came England. And along came Kane with his irrepressible FC Bayern mentality.

Jude Bellingham scored a brace for England in the space of less than two minutes – Mexico were left in a state of shock, whilst England capitalised on the chaos at 2,200 metres above sea level, punishing the co-hosts in the style of a top-class side. But Julian Quinones restored hope; “Si se puede” echoed from the stands – “Yes, it is possible” – as the fans pushed their team on above the extinct Xitle volcano, on which the Azteca Stadium stands.

After the break, fate seemed to deal Mexico a helping hand: Quansah was sent off, leaving England a man down. But the story of the evening turned out to be a quite different one. A simple goal kick, a flick on from Kane, and Gordon found himself free in front of goal – and was brought down. Kane, the FC Bayern striker with such formidable accuracy from the spot, stepped up and converted to make it 3-1, instantly snuffing out the Mexicans’ euphoria as if flicking a light switch. But it wasn’t over yet: they were down to ten men, at the Azteca, up against a wall of emotion and history. It was Kane’s 14th World Cup goal, putting him on a par with that other great FC Bayern striker, Gerd Müller. The 31-year-old became England’s all-time leading World Cup scorer in the last group match, when he netted to make it 2–0 against Panama.

Raúl Jiménez pulled another one back from the penalty spot, but that was all Mexico could manage. The Azteca fortress fell, and a nation was plunged into mourning. And England? They celebrated! An overjoyed Kane was hoarse, having all but lost his voice from singing. Arm in arm with his teammates, he stood in front of the England fans singing “Wonderwall” together - louder than ever before, as if the whole world needed to hear what England had just achieved.

When the FC Bayern striker appeared for a TV interview shortly afterwards, his hand kept going to his throat. “Sorry, I’ve lost my voice,” he apologised. But he still tried to find the right words to describe the spectacle: “It was an incredible, mad game. We fought so hard. And we’ve just been singing. It’s unbelievable – the team, everything.” Time and again, Kane apologised for his vocal slip-ups, but his emotions were stronger than any voice. “It’s one of those days when everything just clicked and we won in the end. I’m happy.” How far can England go? “We’ll fight.” Finally, he gave up: “I’m speechless. I can’t go on.” On Saturday evening (23:00 CEST), the Three Lions take on Norway in the quarter-finals.