England beat Uruguay to reach U20 World Cup knockout stage

Updated: Oct 12, 2023, 06:04 am

England's Bashir Humphreys, right, celebrates after scoring a goal against Uruguay at the U20 World Cup in Argentina.
England's Bashir Humphreys, right, celebrates after scoring a goal against Uruguay at the U20 World Cup in Argentina.
Getty Images

England secured their place in the knockout rounds of the FIFA Under-20 World Cup after holding on for a 3-2 win over Uruguay in La Plata, Argentina, on Thursday.

Tottenham midfielder Alfie Devine had a hand in both goals as England took a 2-0 lead going into half-time. First, Devine's corner set up Bashir Humphreys to head in from six yards in the 22nd minute before he scored himself with a low drive in first-half stoppage time.

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

But Uruguay refused to go down without a fight and deservedly hit back at the start of the second half when Franco Gonzalez's finish on the rebound was allowed to stand following a review form the Video Assistant Referee, having initially been ruled out for offside.

Having halted their opponents' momentum, England scored a fine third goal through Leeds United's Darko Gyabi in the fifth minute of added time.

There was still time for Matias Abaldo to pull a goal back for Uruguay after another rebound from a shot that goalkeeper Matthew Cox should arguably have done better with but it was not enough to prevent Ian Foster's side from making it two wins from two to claim a spot in the round of 16.

England, who beat Tunisia in their opening game, lead Group A with six points. Uruguay and Tunisia, who beat Iraq 3-0 later on Thursday, are on three points with Iraq yet to get off the mark.

The top two teams in each group plus the four best third-placed teams will qualify for the round of 16.

England will meet Iraq in their final group game on Sunday.