WC: England 6-1 Panama
Harry Kane made it five goals in two games as England romped to victory
Harry Kane scored a hat-trick as England swaggered to the World Cup knockout stage with a game to spare after routing Panama 6-1 in Nizhny Novgorod.
A record World Cup haul had come in a remarkable first half as John Stones scored twice from set-pieces (8, 40), Kane lashed two penalties (22, 45+1) and Jesse Lingard found the top corner with a curling strike (36).
Kane knew little about his 62nd-minute third, diverting Ruben Loftus-Cheek's shot in via his heel, but a World Cup treble takes him top of the goalscoring charts in Russia, as well as putting him in illustrious England company alongside Gary Lineker and Sir Geoff Hurst.
Panama were as naive as they were robust in the sweltering heat, but the first-timers were afforded some consolation cheer when 37-year-old substitute Felipe Baloy pounced 12 minutes from time.
The eye-catching scoreline was one to further raise home hopes and bolster goal difference ahead of a showdown with Belgium on Thursday to decide top spot in Group G, although disciplinary records will be needed to separate the sides in the event of a draw.
Only one of the above deductions is applied to a player in a single match.
England are currently ahead on -2, with Belgium -3 but if they remained tied on fair play points, FIFA would draw lots.
Panama had warned England they would "play hard" and Lingard had taken a Gabriel Gomez elbow to the face inside the opening minutes, before danger came at the other end when Edgar Barcenas found Anibal Godoy in space, only for the midfielder to horribly miscue.
But England seized early initiative from another set-piece as Kieran Trippier swung in and Stones found himself free, powering a downwards header past Jaime Penedo as red shirts grappled instead with Kane and Harry Maguire.
Barcenas cut inside and curled narrowly wide (16) as Panama looked to profit down the right flank, but more meaty defending soon gave England the chance to double their lead. Fidel Escobar barged Lingard to the turf and Kane's conversion - into the top-left corner - was emphatic.
Lingard had carried his menace with clever movement and he struck a brilliant third after a give-and-go with Raheem Sterling, England's travelling supporters now loud in the sunshine. A fine training-ground routine brought a fourth, Stones following up after Sterling's close-range header was parried, and when Godoy was penalised for arms tightly wrapped around Kane, the Tottenham striker lashed another spot-kick the same way.
England's intensity dropped in the high temperatures after the break, their work long done, but Sterling might have opened his account had Kane's pass been better placed.
Kane instead completed his hat-trick unwittingly, before being replaced by Jamie Vardy, as Gareth Southgate took the chance to call for fresh legs.
A barely-worked Jordan Pickford kept out Michael Murillo's dink and a lunging Roman Torres went close at the back post, but the moment to remember for Panama finally came when Beloy slid in to meet Ricardo Avila's corner, England left level with Belgium on goal difference, as well as points.