Have you got your breath back from England’s incredible 3-2 win over Mexico at the World Cup yet?
Despite the 1am kick off time, which was further delayed, Three Lions fans packed out pubs and hit the sofa to cheer on Harry Kane and co.
It was a chaotic and fraught encounter: England cruising into a 2-0 lead thanks to Jude Bellingham’s quickfire double, before Mexico hit back just before half time.
Jarell Quansah’s red card early in the second period complicated matters for Thomas Tuchel and his players, but a third goal from Kane got England’s noses in front again – and from there they would not relent, with a remarkable rearguard effort with ten men in challenging conditions.
Into the quarter finals England marched… leaving their fans, in various states of tiredness and sobriety, celebrating as the sun began to rise.
One Sky Bet customer was punching the air in jubilation as well. They had placed a £20 bet builder with the firm at odds of 951/1, and watched on – with jaw-dropping surprise, presumably – as each of their nine legs landed in turn.
And that, math fans will already know, secured a payout in excess of £19,000!
Mexico City Miracle
The punter picked out their nine selections ahead of kick off at the Estadio Azteca:
- England to Win
- Harry Kane to Score Anytime
- Raul Jimenez to Score Anytime
- Jude Bellingham to Score or Assist
- Bukayo Saka to Provide an Assist
- Marc Guehi to Be Carded
- Jorge Sanchez to Be Carded
- Over 3.5 Cards
It’s a lengthy list of pieces that need to fall into place, but on a humid night on Mexico City the improbable seemingly became possible.
Things got off to a rather inauspicious start when Declan Rice was booked with barely a minute on the clock – ideal for our card-backing punter, mind you.
The opening half-an-hour or so was a breathless affair, but the Estadio Azteca fell silent after 36 minutes when a rapid England counter-attack saw Saka cross from the right-hand side and Bellingham head home.
One goal, two selections landed!
Just two minutes later, England fans were in dreamland as Bellingham played a protracted one-two with Kane before slotting home his and his team’s second.
Anyone tempted to put the kettle on would have missed out on Mexico’s lead-cutting strike in the 42nd minute. A devilish free kick found its way to Julian Quinones, who volleyed home.
The Mexicans threw the metaphorical kitchen sink at England up until the half-time break, with Jimenez enjoying two decent chances to score – he was thwarted on both occasions, but our punter must have been feeling somewhat bullish about their chances in the second period.
Chaos In the Capital
Within ten minutes of the restart, Quansah was shown his marching orders for a tough tackle on Jesus Gallardo.
Thankfully for our punter, Saka had already done the business – he was substituted off in favour of John Stones as part of a tactical reshuffle, and barely a minute later another selection was in the bank.
Anthony Gordon was brought down in the penalty area by the Mexico goalkeeper, with the responsibility from the spot falling to that man Kane. You won’t be surprised to learn that he made no mistake.
Harry Kane makes no mistake from the spot ⚽️
After Anthony Gordon was brought down, England were awarded a penalty to make it 3-1. pic.twitter.com/mboR6yUKEN
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 6, 2026
A two-goal cushion is nice, but being down to ten men in energy-sapping conditions was always likely to mean that there would be a twist in the tale for England.
Kane briefly went from hero to villain when his clumsy challenge on Brian Gutierrez saw the Mexicans awarded a spot kick following a VAR review.
In the space of 60 seconds, Jimenez – our punter’s anytime goalscorer selection – scored from the spot and Marc Guehi, one of their card picks, was booked for dissent.
Two minutes after that chaos, Jorge Sanchez was cautioned for dissent following some argy-bargy with Nico O’Reilly, taking the match card count past four – two more picks were in the bank for the Sky Bet customer.
And so only thing stood between them and their £19,057 loot: England winning the match.
By hook or by crook, England played out the next 20 minutes without conceding… before facing another eleven excruciating minutes of injury time.
In one of the great England performances in living memory, the Three Lions showed tremendous heart and courage to repel the Mexicans – rounding out an outstanding 3-2 victory.
A double celebration for the patriotic punter in the small hours of Monday morning…