England shine as Colombia spoil Uzbekistan's dream on Day 7

The seventh day of the FIFA World Cup delivered goals and drama as England secured an impressive victory over Croatia, while Colombia overcame World Cup debutants Uzbekistan to take control of Group K, reports a Qazinform News Agency correspondent.

photo: QAZINFORM

In Group L, England made a strong start to their campaign with a 4-2 victory over Croatia in one of the most entertaining matches of the tournament so far. Harry Kane scored twice, while Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford also found the net as the Three Lions claimed all three points and moved to the top of the group.

Earlier in the same group, Ghana edged Panama 1-0 in a tightly contested encounter. The narrow victory leaves the Black Stars level on points with England after the opening round of matches.

Group K opened with a surprise result as Portugal were held to a 1-1 draw by DR Congo. The Portuguese were unable to convert their dominance into a winning goal and had to settle for a point.

Later in the day, Uzbekistan's World Cup debut campaign suffered a setback as the Central Asian side fell 3-1 to Colombia. Daniel Muñoz gave the South Americans the lead in the 40th minute after being set up by Luis Díaz, before Uzbekistan's Abbosbek Fayzullaev headed home the nation's first-ever FIFA World Cup goal in the 60th minute to level the score. Colombia responded quickly, with Luis Díaz restoring the lead five minutes later, while Jaminton Campaz added a stoppage-time goal to seal the victory and move Colombia to the top of Group K.

After the opening matches, England lead Group L on goal difference ahead of Ghana, while Colombia sit first in Group K, followed by Portugal and DR Congo. Uzbekistan remain fourth but still have two group-stage matches remaining to fight for a place in the knockout rounds.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick as Argentina cruised to a 3-0 victory over Algeria, while France and Norway opened their World Cup campaigns with convincing wins.