Harry Kane argued justice had been done after the England captain nodded his side’s stoppage-time winner against Tunisia having seen two vociferous penalty appeals for fouls by Yassine Meriah waved away by the Colombian referee.

The Tottenham forward was wrestled to the ground by his marker at corners either side of half‑time as England heaved to re‑establish the lead surrendered to a relatively soft penalty, awarded against Kyle Walker. The referee, Wilmar Roldán, and the VAR determined neither incident worthy of review. As it was, Kane’s first goals at a major finals, converted from close range at set pieces, ensured England won their opening group game for the sixth time at a World Cup.

“There could have been a couple of penalties, especially when you look at their one, which looked quite soft,” said Kane, whose two goals keep him in touch with Cristiano Ronaldo in the embryonic race for the golden boot. “The VAR is there to look at those decisions. If they don’t think it’s a penalty, we have to deal with it, but I struggled to get the Tunisia players off me all night. They were trying to grab hold, trying to stop us running, I couldn’t move at set pieces. So maybe there was a bit of justice at the end to get one at the back post.

Play Video 1:16 England fans ecstatic after late Harry Kane winner during group stage clash with Tunisia – video

“For sure, the tactics Tunisia used were a lesson for us. It’s part of the game. We knew, watching the other matches, there have been a lot of soft decisions and penalties awarded, so we had to be aware of that. I’m just so proud we kept going, kept on fighting, and made people back home proud. It shows good character to get on with it, and it’s a massive win. We spoke a lot about togetherness. We have a great bond off the pitch and it’s nice to see it working on the pitch. Everyone, staff included, is delighted. We’ll get on that plane happy.”

The team’s refusal to be dispirited at remaining level going into stoppage time despite their dominance – England created numerous opportunities – prompted praise from Gareth Southgate. “Even at 1‑1 I was really proud of the performance,” said the manager, whose team join Belgium in claiming maximum points from their first game in the section. “I’ve talked a lot in the weeks leading into this game about performance being key. That’s the bit we can control. There were things in the game we couldn’t control tonight, but we reacted really well to them.

“If it had been 1‑1 there would have been a level of disappointment, and the result back home would be viewed differently, but the performance was very good. We created a lot of clear-cut chances in the first half, as many as I remember, and have to be more ruthless with those. But we recovered from a harsh decision, kept our composure, then kept our patience in the second half and looked for good opportunities rather than throwing the ball into the box and hoping. There was wave after wave of attack and we weren’t hit on the counter, so I liked the controlled manner in which we defended.

Harry Kane keeps his head and England find a ray of sunshine | Barney Ronay Read more

“We had leaders on the field who kept delivering the right messages. We spoke this morning and covered being behind and in front in games, how we’d react being 1-1 with 15 minutes to go, and we had to keep probing and look for the win while not exposing ourselves on the counter … Maybe you run out of time, but we kept doing the right things and making good decisions. And good teams score late.”

England will monitor Dele Alli, who felt discomfort in a quad muscle just before the interval and was eventually replaced by the excellent Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Alli departed saying he was hopeful the injury would not be serious.

Quick guide England player ratings Show Hide England (3-3-2-2) Jordan Pickford Only real test for the 24‑year‑old was penalty on 35 minutes to which he got fingertips. 6 Kyle Walker At fault for the penalty, with foul on Fakhreddine Ben Youssef. A soft decision but naive defending. Booked. 5 John Stones Should have scored with a header in first half and lost concentration at key moments. 6 Harry Maguire Assured passing but lost ball in dangerous areas and would have been punished by a better side. 6 Kieran Trippier Lovely balls whipped in from the right and caused Tunisia problems with pinpoint delivery from set pieces. 8 Jordan Henderson Preferred to Eric Dier and gave a good account of himself in so‑called midfield pivot role. 7 Ashley Young A few incisive deliveries into the box and oldest player in England squad set up the first goal. 7 Jesse Lingard A litany of missed chances as he failed to make Tunisia pay for England’s early dominance. 6 Dele Alli Tottenham forward looked lethargic at times, whether through injury or lack of fitness. 6 Raheem Sterling Sparky in the first half but the question mark over his finishing ability remains. 6 Harry Kane Kept cool to head in England’s winner – his second goal – and composed despite being repeatedly fouled in the area. 8 Subs Marcus Rashford (for Sterling 68) 6, Ruben Loftus-Cheek (for Alli 80) 7, Eric Dier (for Lingard 90) Ratings by Martha Kelner.

“We had to keep monitoring Dele,” Southgate said. “He was feeling a bit of an issue just before half-time, but felt he could carry on. The runs he was making was still causing problems, but we had good options on the bench. The freshness of Marcus [Rashford] and Ruben brought energy and a different threat to the ones we’d posed. They had a good impact on the game. So did the four forwards who started the game. Their movement and runs and interchanges were a real problem.”