{"id":16624,"date":"2026-07-02T01:43:15","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T20:13:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/?p=16624"},"modified":"2026-07-02T01:43:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T20:13:15","slug":"fifa-world-cup-2026-dr-congo-1-0-england-half-time-report-mpasis-half-of-a-lifetime-stuns-england","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/fifa-world-cup-2026-dr-congo-1-0-england-half-time-report-mpasis-half-of-a-lifetime-stuns-england\/","title":{"rendered":"FIFA World Cup 2026\u2122 | DR Congo 1\u20130 England | Half-Time Report | Mpasi&#8217;s Half of a Lifetime Stuns England"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Nobody saw this coming. DR Congo lead England 1\u20130 at the break in their FIFA World Cup 2026\u2122 Round of 32 clash at Atlanta Stadium, and the scoreline only tells half the story.<\/p><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_73 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-black ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Page Contents:<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #282fff;color:#282fff\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #282fff;color:#282fff\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/fifa-world-cup-2026-dr-congo-1-0-england-half-time-report-mpasis-half-of-a-lifetime-stuns-england\/#7%E2%80%B2_%E2%80%94_The_Goal_That_Shocked_Atlanta\" title=\"7&#8242; \u2014 The Goal That Shocked Atlanta\">7&#8242; \u2014 The Goal That Shocked Atlanta<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/fifa-world-cup-2026-dr-congo-1-0-england-half-time-report-mpasis-half-of-a-lifetime-stuns-england\/#Englands_Four_Attempts_%E2%80%94_and_Why_None_of_Them_Went_In\" title=\"England&#8217;s Four Attempts \u2014 and Why None of Them Went In\">England&#8217;s Four Attempts \u2014 and Why None of Them Went In<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/fifa-world-cup-2026-dr-congo-1-0-england-half-time-report-mpasis-half-of-a-lifetime-stuns-england\/#The_VAR_Controversy_That_England_Cannot_Let_Go\" title=\"The VAR Controversy That England Cannot Let Go\">The VAR Controversy That England Cannot Let Go<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/fifa-world-cup-2026-dr-congo-1-0-england-half-time-report-mpasis-half-of-a-lifetime-stuns-england\/#What_England_Need_in_the_Second_Half\" title=\"What England Need in the Second Half\">What England Need in the Second Half<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p>England had four genuine opportunities to equalise. They were denied by a goal-line clearance, two remarkable saves, a stoppage-time block, and a VAR review that has left the English bench incandescent. Lionel Mpasi has just played one of the great first-half goalkeeper performances in World Cup history. England are in serious trouble.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><i>England vs DR Congo is live right now on ZEE 5 \u2014 stream the second half of <\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/sports\/football\/fifa-world-cup\/2026\"><i>FIFA World Cup 2026\u2122<\/i><\/a><i> with the <\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/myaccount\/subscription?plan-ref=0-11-7467&amp;asset-ref=0-6-4z5914493&amp;visibility=SELECTED&amp;context=FIFA\"><i>ZEE5 FIFA Subscription <\/i><\/a><i>\u00a0Quarterly Plan at \u20b9799.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"7%E2%80%B2_%E2%80%94_The_Goal_That_Shocked_Atlanta\"><\/span><b>7&#8242; \u2014 The Goal That Shocked Atlanta<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/sports\/football\/fifa-world-cup\/2026\/0-6-4z5974253\/0-2-5z5974716\/teams\/congo-dr\/congo-dr-squad\">DR Congo<\/a> wasted no time. Captain Chancel Mbemba launched a quarterback-style diagonal \u2014 a long, arcing ball that cut clean over the top of England&#8217;s defensive line and found Almeria winger Brian Cipenga in space on the right. Cipenga let it bounce to control, composed himself, and drove a low right-footed strike past Jordan Pickford at the near post. 1\u20130.<\/p>\n<p>It was devastatingly simple. England&#8217;s high defensive line, designed to compress space and trigger the offside trap, had been bypassed in a single pass. Tuchel&#8217;s side did not have time to process the shock before DR Congo dropped into their defensive block and dared England to find a way through.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Englands_Four_Attempts_%E2%80%94_and_Why_None_of_Them_Went_In\"><\/span><b>England&#8217;s Four Attempts \u2014 and Why None of Them Went In<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Rashford, first. He cut inside his marker inside the box and curled a shot that beat Mpasi completely \u2014 only for Arthur Masuaku to sprint back, position himself on the goal-line, and produce a spectacular save. England&#8217;s bench rose from their seats. The ball stayed out.<\/p>\n<p>Bellingham, twice. Around the 16th minute, Nico O&#8217;Reilly whipped a dangerous left-wing cross into the box. Bellingham timed his jump perfectly inside the six-yard box \u2014 only for Mpasi to come off his line aggressively and punch the ball clear with tremendous force before Bellingham could direct his header downward. It was an extraordinary piece of goalkeeping: brave, decisive, and perfectly timed.<\/p>\n<p>Later in the half, Declan Rice delivered a pinpoint aerial cross deep into the penalty area. Bellingham found space on the left side of the box and directed a powerful header toward the corner. Mpasi dived full length to his right and pushed it wide. By this point, Atlanta had fallen silent. Even the neutrals could not quite believe what they were watching.<\/p>\n<p>Then came the 45th minute. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/sports\/football\/fifa-world-cup\/2026\/0-6-4z5974253\/0-2-5z5974716\/teams\/england\/england-squad\">England<\/a> won a corner. The ball threaded through a crowded six-yard box and trickled to the back post where Kane was waiting to tap in. He lunged. Mpasi flung himself across his line. The block was point-blank. The whistle went. Half-time.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_VAR_Controversy_That_England_Cannot_Let_Go\"><\/span><b>The VAR Controversy That England Cannot Let Go<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In the 43rd minute, Kane broke past the Congolese centre-backs onto a loose ball and drove into the penalty area. As he pushed the ball past the onrushing Mpasi, the goalkeeper&#8217;s outstretched arms made contact, and Kane went down. England screamed for a penalty.<\/p>\n<p>Referee Adham Makhadmeh waved it away immediately. The decision triggered a lengthy VAR review. Replays showed clear contact from Mpasi&#8217;s arms on Kane as the ball was played. VAR official Khamis Al Marri reviewed the incident \u2014 and concluded it did not meet the threshold for a clear and obvious error.<\/p>\n<p>The referee was never sent to the pitchside monitor. The original decision stood. England&#8217;s fury is entirely understandable. Whether it was a penalty is genuinely debatable. That the referee was not asked to look at his own monitor is harder to justify.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_England_Need_in_the_Second_Half\"><\/span><b>What England Need in the Second Half<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>They need a goal, first. Which sounds obvious, but after four genuine attempts in the first 45 minutes, the psychological weight of this DR Congo defensive performance is very real. Tuchel will need to find a way to change something \u2014 perhaps in shape, perhaps in personnel \u2014 to create a different kind of problem for Mpasi.<\/p>\n<p>More than anything, England need to keep their composure. The VAR decision, the goal-line clearance, the blocked tap-in \u2014 frustration is already high. The worst thing they can do is let it affect their decision-making in the second half.<\/p>\n<p>DR Congo, for their part, are 45 minutes away from one of the great upsets in World Cup history. They will defend with everything they have. The second half starts now.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><i>Don&#8217;t miss what happens next \u2014 England vs DR Congo continues live on ZEE 5, India&#8217;s official home of FIFA World Cup 2026\u2122.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><i>Disclaimer: Subscription pack prices are subject to change from time to time. Please visit the subscription page for the most up-to-date pricing information.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nobody saw this coming. DR Congo lead England 1\u20130 at the break in their FIFA World Cup 2026\u2122 Round of 32 clash at Atlanta Stadium, and the scoreline only tells half the story. England had four genuine opportunities to equalise. They were denied by a goal-line clearance, two remarkable saves, a stoppage-time block, and a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":16599,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ub_ctt_via":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3019],"tags":[3425,3031,3358],"class_list":["post-16624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fifa-world-cup-2026","tag-dr-congo-vs-england-half-time-report","tag-fifa-world-cup-2026","tag-round-of-32"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1132x400-47.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Sourav K","author_link":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/author\/sourav-k\/"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>FIFA World Cup 2026\u2122 | DR 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