June 13, (THEWILL)- Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions squad of England opened their account of the Euros 2020 competition with Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling’s second-half goal giving them a winning start against Croatia at Wembley in London.
To the credit of the England manager, two of the questionable inclusions in his squad, Leeds United Kalvin Phillips and Sterling, more than repaid the manager for the confidence reposed in them and silenced the naysayers.
And, for England’s only goal, the two English Premier League-based players combined to make sure the day belonged to the English side. Phillips, who capped a fantastic display with his assist, picked the ball up on the right flank and after leaving a Croatian defender and another opponent behind, slipped a through-pass to Sterling.
The pacy City goal-poacher did not need to think twice before squeezing an effort past Croatian goalkeeper and Dynamo Zagreb number one, Dominik Livakovic. It was such a perfectly-weighted pass to crown the man of the match performance from Phillips that Sterling was graceful to accept and score from the centre of the box.
At the rate with which England began the game, it appeared to be the kind of match that promised many goals. The English were out of the blocks in a thrilling fashion forcing their opponents on the back foot almost immediately. However, they were not very clinical with the chances they created.
Croatia could have been behind as early as the sixth minute if Phil Foden’s strike did not come off the upright and a chance for captain Harry Kane to double the advantage for the Three Lions went begging at the hour mark. Sterling also missed a glorious chance to net a brace and put an extra sheen of gloss on the scoreline.
There was also a rapidly taken free-kick by Mason Mount that could have gone in but skimmed off the top of the post by inches.
Sterling’s goal, his 13th in the last 17 caps, was enough to see England start off to a positive result and a clean sheet with Jordan Pickford keeping things tidy at the back. Croatia did put in some effort but could not find the means to breach the English goal before the final whistle.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
