Thierry Henry has warned England that they will not be able to stage another World Cup comeback if they go behind against Mexico in the last 16. The warning comes after England's narrow 2-1 victory over DR Congo in the round of 32, where they conceded an early goal before Harry Kane scored twice to secure the win.
England's slow start against DR Congo
England were stunned early in their round-of-32 match against DR Congo on Wednesday when Brian Cipenga scored in the seventh minute. Thomas Tuchel's side left it late, with two goals from Harry Kane sealing a 2-1 victory and setting up a round-of-16 tie against Mexico at the Azteca Stadium at 1am BST on Monday morning.
Mexico have won all four of their World Cup games so far, defeating South Africa, South Korea, the Czech Republic, and Ecuador. They are yet to concede a goal in the tournament, presenting a formidable challenge for England.
Altitude advantage for Mexico
The World Cup co-hosts also have a significant advantage as the Azteca Stadium sits at around 7,200 feet above sea level, leaving England's players with no time to adjust to the altitude. Henry, who won the World Cup with France in 1998, predicts England will struggle if they concede first against Mexico.
“You don’t want to go there too soon right but you have to address the situation,” Henry told Fox Sports. “If they start the same way they started today at the Azteca, dealing with the altitude, we don’t know how the weather is going to be, it’s one thing to play in a dome and to play outside.”
Henry: 'You can't always rely on Harry Kane'
Henry highlighted Mexico's defensive strength, noting that the team has not conceded a goal in the tournament. He also acknowledged the importance of Harry Kane but warned that England cannot depend on late comebacks.
“And so the Mexico we saw yesterday and how they played [against Ecuador], I don’t know if you’re going to come back against a team that still hasn’t conceded a goal,” Henry said. “We all know this guy, Sir Harry [Kane], can be in a situation where he can open up any team at any moment, but you can’t start like that and you’re not always going to have that cooling break that can give you a little chance, because Ecuador after that cooling break were in trouble. I mean Harry Kane… every time it’s him saving them.”
England will need to improve their performance if they hope to advance past Mexico and continue their World Cup campaign.
