Reigan Heskey sends England through! Man City youngster kills off South Korea while Tottenham's Luca Williams-Barnett shines as Young Lions reach U17 World Cup round of 16

There was a real scare for England inside the opening minute after Manchester City's Dante Headley was bundled off the ball by Kim Ji-sung who thrashed his shot into the roof off the net, but there was huge relief when referee Abdou Abdel Mefire awarded a foul for the push. The Young Lions enjoyed much of the possession in the early stages, but had to wait until the 21st minute to test South Korea keeper Park Do-Hun as Tottenham's Luca Williams-Barnett saw his fierce drive from the edge of the box well saved. 

The deadlock was broken in the 28th minute following a bustling run down the right from the England captain Seth Ridgeon, and the Fulham star’s pass was directed into his own net by Jung Hui-seop. And England doubled their lead six minutes later after City’s Heskey headed home from close range after a brilliant searching cross from Aston Villa youngster Bradley Burrowes. 

England had chances to extend their lead in the second-half, with Chelsea's Chizaram Ezenwata missing the target from just inside the box and Williams-Barnett saw an audacious effort, from just inside his own half, slide agonisingly wide. The Young Lions will now face either Austria or Tunisia in the next round. 

Williams-Barnett may not have got on the scoresheet, but he was right at the heart of everything England did well. He covered acres of ground, helping in defence when required and offered some excellent touches around the opposition box, too. If anyone deserved to score from their own half it was the Tottenham youngster who's enjoying the opportunities offered to him in his breakthrough season. The Luton-born midfielder made his senior debut in September 2025, becoming the club's youngest player in the Carabao Cup and the 900th player to appear for the club. He signed his first professional contract last month, too. 

It was a truly calamitous moment for South Korea centre-back Jung who made an absolute mess of trying to block a pass. He only succeeded in getting his feet in a tangle while attempting to clear the danger, stumbled, fell and directed the ball into the back of his own net to give England the lead. You could almost feel sorry for him, it was a shame for a mistake of that magnitude to happen to a young player on such a big stage.