Goals everywhere as England show they no longer rely on Kane

AL KHOR, Qatar: England arrived at the World Cup so reliant on Harry Kane's goals it seemed inconceivable that Gareth Southgate's side could make a run for the title without their captain being fully fit and firing on all cylinders.

The good news for England fans is that he is.

The even better news for those dreaming of their side finally delivering a trophy after successive painful near misses at major tournaments is that it suddenly does not seem to matter so much whether Kane is amongst the goals or not.

The captain belatedly got his tally ticking again on Sunday with his first goal of the tournament as England swept into the quarter-finals with a 3-0 victory over Senegal.

It took Kane's international total to 52, one behind the England record held by Wayne Rooney and few would bet against him matching it next Saturday in a blockbuster against France.

The Tottenham Hotspur striker now stands alone as his country's top marksman in tournament finals with 11, overtaking Gary Lineker with whom he had shared the record.

Remarkably, Kane's goal on the stroke of halftime from a magnificent flowing move begun by a marauding Jude Bellingham to make it 2-0 was his first shot on target in the tournament.

More remarkably, and the reason England's hopes are soaring as high as the desert sun, is that it made him the eighth England player to hit the target so far in Qatar.

That incredible spread of goals has been shared by Marcus Rashford (3), Bukayo Saka (3), Jude Bellingham, Raheem Sterling, Jack Grealish, Phil Foden and Jordan Henderson plus Kane.

"The quality of the moves was outstanding and the finishing was ruthless," Southgate said.

England's free-flowing attacking football means they have already matched their World Cup record of 12