Social integration expert Rakib Ehsan shares his thoughts on England's 3-2 win over Mexico
In what can only be described as a victory for the ages, England managed to overcome the intense pressure of the high-altitude Azteca cauldron and beat Mexico 3-2 to progress to the quarter-finals of the World Cup.
It is no secret that England manager Thomas Tuchel left some big players out of the squad – including Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer.
I personally would have liked Trent Alexander-Arnold and Morgan Gibbs-White to have been included.
At the World Cup itself, in the group stages, England started off with an exhilarating 4-2 win against Croatia.
But this was followed by a dour 0-0 draw with Ghana and a somewhat underwhelming 2-0 victory against Panama.
In the last 32 knockout game, England looked like they were going to be dumped out of the tournament by a spirited DR Congo side before skipper Harry Kane’s heroic brace.
England had not been close to being the most impressive team at the World Cup, but this win against Mexico was an all-time classic.
For me, it was the most satisfying England victory in my lifetime – even more so than the 5-1 drubbing of Germany in Munich under the late Sven-Göran Eriksson back in September 2001.
The difference between the two is that while it was hugely enjoyable to watch England utterly dominate Germany on their own patch, they had to use every fibre of their being to get themselves over the line in the Azteca – with Jarell Quansah’s red card in the 54th minute making it all the more challenging.
Withstanding the Azteca siege must have been a truly energy-sapping experience, especially for those who played the entire game.
In Harry Kane, the Three Lions do have the most impressive well-rounded central striker in the world.
Jude Bellingham is clearly not everyone’s cup of tea – some seem to be of the view that he is arrogant and overconfident.
But he is a world-class player capable of special moments of brilliance, and he has the right to be self-assured – Bellingham has achieved a great deal for someone who only recently turned 23.
Both ended up on the scoresheet, with Bellingham scoring a brace within 98 seconds.
But what will matter more to the fans was how Bellingham – who is a captain-in-waiting for England – gave a man-of-the-match performance, where he did not only show his exceptional ability but ultimately ran himself into the ground. He is nothing but a national treasure.
The Battle of Azteca will go down as an extraordinarily memorable, historic, and significant win for an England side which showed the value of operating tirelessly as a collective and being gritty – a timely corrective in a modern era where individual freedom and creativity are over-promoted.
They represent the demographic diversity of modern England but embody those old-fashioned values of resilience and determination that have been lost over time.
