Harry Kane was left disappointed as penalty decisions in both boxes went against England during a 2-1 World Cup defeat of Tunisia.
Kane’s stoppage-time header earned the Three Lions a tough three points in their Group G opener, a Ferjani Sassi penalty having cancelled out the captain’s early strike.
Tunisia’s spot-kick appeared to be harshly awarded after Kyle Walker caught Fakhreddine Ben Youssef with a stray arm in the area.
England regularly complained to referee Wilmar Roldan that Kane and his team-mates were being held at attacking set-pieces.
With VAR in use at the World Cup, Kane was left baffled by Roldan’s decisions despite Gareth Southgate’s men stealing all three points at Volgograd Arena on Monday.
“We might have been a bit disappointed by that [decisions],” Man of the Match Kane told a news conference.
“Obviously when you look at the penalty they got – I’ve not seen it back – on the pitch it looked quite soft.
“I guess that’s what VAR is there for, to look at those decisions. If they didn’t think it was a penalty then we have to deal with that.
“For me, I struggled to get them [defenders] off me, I tried to run at a few corners and just couldn’t move. I guess as players there’s nothing we can do about that. We just have to hope the officials get it right more often than not.”
Tunisia’s physical approach made life tough for England but Kane was pleased with England’s response.
“It’s part of the game,” said Kane, who became the first England player to score a World Cup brace since Gary Lineker in 1990.
“We’ve seen in some of the other games that there have been a lot of penalties and a lot of what I would say are soft decisions.
“We have to be aware of that and obviously we’ve had one go against us and probably another couple that didn’t go our way. But as players it’s difficult – all we can do is get on with the game and it’s down to the officials.
“Hopefully when they watch it back they can get it right for the next game. I’m more proud of us that we kept going and fighting and sent a lot of fans home happy.”
