Kane spares England's blushes in lacklustre win over Andorra
Thomas Tuchel's side were booed off by England fans in the RCDE Stadium after struggling to impress against a team ranked 173rd in the world.
Kane's 72nd international goal ensured England avoided the ultimate embarrassment of failing to beat such lowly opposition.
Tuchel is the first England manager to win his first three competitive games without conceding a goal.
But given the paucity of opposition provided by Andorra, Latvia and Albania in the Group K qualifiers, that achievement rings a little hollow after this miserable display.
"I'm not happy with the performance. We completely lost the momentum and couldn't get it back. We ended up in a place that was not good enough in terms of urgency," Tuchel said.
"We can just admit it that it's not what we expect from us. I was most worried in the last 20 minutes because I didn't like the attitude we ended the game with.
"I didn't like the lack of urgency. It did not match the occasion. It is still a World Cup qualifier."
Tuchel had warned that England's tired stars should not be expected to thrash Andorra after gruelling domestic seasons.
The German cited the motivational difficulties posed by the summer international break, just before nine of his players jet off to the Club World Cup in the United States.
His fears proved prescient as England laboured to establish any rhythm in a soporific match with the feel of a pre-season friendly.
It was a far cry from the pulsating drama produced by Spain and France in their recent Nations League semi-final, underlining the task facing Tuchel as he builds up to the 2026 World Cup.
Tuchel didn't help England's cause by fielding an experimental side.
Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones started at right-back and Chelsea right-back Reece James featured at left-back.
With Declan Rice rested, Ajax midfielder Jordan Henderson, 34, made his first England start since 2023, becoming the Three Lions' oldest player since Frank Lampard 11 years ago.
Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka was left out after only completing one training session this week, leaving Noni Madueke, Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer to line up behind striker Harry Kane.
Bereft of ideas
Chelsea winger Madueke impressed but Palmer and Rogers were underwhelming.
Andorra hadn't scored an international goal for more than two years and they quickly settled into a defensive formation that allowed England to monopolise possession.
As Tuchel had predicted, England didn't find it easy to prise open a massed Andorra defence featuring nine men behind the ball at all times.
Madueke's drive from the edge of the area was pushed away by Andorra keeper Iker Alvarez.
Kane should have broken the deadlock with a close-range chance from Jones' cut-back, but the England captain prodded wastefully wide.
Given Tuchel's desire to see his player perform in the warm Catalan temperatures ahead of the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, it was instructive to see England struggle to find the energy and purpose required to make Andorra uncomfortable.
They moved the ball too slowly, and were reduced them to hopeful efforts from distance, with Jude Bellingham's 25-yard shot comfortably saved by Alvarez.
England looked bereft of ideas and the fans were beginning to grumble.
Kane eased the mounting pressure when the Bayern Munich striker made the breakthrough five minutes after the interval.
After Kane's initial shot was saved, Madueke alertly guided a low cross back into the six-yard box for the England captain to tap into the empty net.
It was a modest way to reach a milestone for Kane, who has a remarkable 450 career goals for club and country in 697 games.
England still couldn't find any momentum and were nearly punished in the closing stages when Guillaume Lopez's shot was blocked by Ezri Konsa.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
6 hours ago
- France 24
Pochettino plays down Spurs return rumors
Argentine Pochettino was in charge of Spurs for five years from 2014 and took the team to the Champions League final but never won a trophy with the North London club. Despite having signed a two year contract in September to lead the USA at the 2026 World Cup, which they are co-hosting with Canada and Mexico, Pochettino's name has appeared in bookmakers' lists of favorites for the Spurs job and in several UK reports. But asked on Saturday about the links, in his post-match press conference following the USA's 2-1 home friendly defeat to Turkey, Pochettino played down the talk. "After I left in 2019, every time that I was free, and the place of the position of the manager or head coach in Tottenham Hotspur (was vacant), my name is appearing on the list," Pochettino said. "If you have seen the rumors, I think there are 100 coaches in the list. I think, don't be worried about that," he added. Pochettino has talked in the past about his remaining affection for Spurs and has never ruled out the possibility of returning to the club at some point. But he suggested the timing was not right for a second chance with his old team. "If something happened, you for sure you will see, but we cannot talk about this type of thing, because I think today, it's not real. It's not realistic. And look at where I am, where we are," he said in the stadium press room in Hartford, Connecticut. "And the thing is, the answer is so clear, no? But we're talking about it because it's my club, like Newells or Espanyol," he added. Postecoglou was fired just 16 days after the Australian ended Tottenham's 17-year trophy drought by winning the Europa League. Postecoglou led Tottenham to a 1-0 victory over Manchester United in Bilbao to clinch the north Londoners' first European prize in 41 years and secure a place in next season's Champions League. The former Celtic boss paid the price for Tottenham's worst domestic season since they were relegated from the top flight in 1976-77. The USA have now lost three games in a row, following losses to Panama and Canada in March's CONCACAF Nations League but Pochettino was upbeat about his team's encouraging display after question marks about the attitude of his team in recent games. "This attitude I want to continue for the future until we arrive to the World Cup … that is the only way we can improve," he said. "If I decide in September (to have a) different roster, what I want is the same level of commitment, attitude, not to complain (about) this and that," he added.
France 24
6 hours ago
- France 24
Turkey inflict third straight loss on World Cup hosts USA
Pochettino, whose team lost to Panama and Canada in the CONCACAF Nations League finals in March, was without several starters, including captain and AC Milan winger Christian Pulisic. Almost a year out from the start of the World Cup, which the USA is co-hosting with Canada and Mexico, Pochettino used the match to take a look at some of those on the fringes of his squad. One of those, Houston Dynamo midfielder Jack McGlynn, put the home side ahead in the second minute in spectacular fashion. The 21-year-old picked the ball up on the right flank, cut inside and then curled a beautiful shot from 20-yards out into the far corner. It was an intense start from a hungry looking USA, but Turkey soon found their footing and began to apply pressure on the USA back line. Arda Guler missed a great chance, unmarked in the box he leaned back and fired over the bar and then Orkun Kokcu forced debutant keeper Matt Freese into a fine save with a fierce drive. The visitors' pressure paid off in the 24th minute but it was gifted to them by USA midfielder Johnny Cardoso who, attempting to play out from the back, clipped a pass against Guler which ricocheted past Freese and into the net. Less then three minutes later, Turkey had the lead after the USA defence was unable to clear and the ball fell to Kerem Akturkoglu who drove home. Pochettino's men were much better after the break though and were unfortunate not to draw level - Max Arfsten headed wide from close range and Patrick Agyemang had a shot on target but the best opportunity fell to Malik Tillman. Substitute Tyler Adams floated a lovely cross to the back post but with all the goal to aim at, Tillman headed straight at Turkey keeper Berke Ozer. As the USA pushed forward in search of an equalizer, Turkey had a late chance to make it 3-1 but after a swift counter-attack Baris Alper Yilmaz screwed his shot wide. "For the first time for a few camps there were more positives than negatives," said midfielder Adams. "I think we have a lot of room for growth, if you asked me in March, I would say that we were far away but after a performance like that, there's a lot more positives that we can take away," he added. The USA face Switzerland in Nashville on Tuesday.
France 24
9 hours ago
- France 24
Kane saves England as Dutch and Austrians open World Cup campaigns with wins
Harry Kane's 72nd international goal ensured England avoided the ultimate embarrassment of failing to beat Andorra. Even so, Thomas Tuchel's side were booed off in Barcelona after struggling to impress against a team ranked 173rd in the world. Tuchel is the first England manager to win his first three competitive games without conceding a goal. But given the paucity of opposition provided by Andorra, Latvia and Albania in the Group K qualifiers, that achievement rings a little hollow after this miserable display. "I'm not happy with the performance. We completely lost the momentum and couldn't get it back. We ended up in a place that was not good enough in terms of urgency," Tuchel said. "We can just admit it that it's not what we expect from us. I was most worried in the last 20 minutes because I didn't like the attitude we ended the game with. "I didn't like the lack of urgency. It did not match the occasion. It is still a World Cup qualifier." England pulled five points clear after three matches in Group K as second-placed Albania drew 0-0 at home with Serbia. Rey Manaj of Albania wasted a penalty in first-half added time. Serbia was one of three teams playing their first qualifying match Saturday after they had been involved in Nations League playoffs. Netherlands made their debut with a crisp 2-0 win over Finland in Helsinki. Memphis Depay scored after six minutes. Denzil Dumfries, one week after his unhappy experience playing for Inter Milan in the Champions League final, added the second after 23 minutes. Netherlands jumped to third in Group G, overtaking Lithuania and Malta who drew 0-0. The Dutch are one point behind Finland and three behind leaders Poland who did not play. Marcel Sabitzer and Michael Gregoritsch scored as Austria beat Romania 2-1 in Vienna. Florin Tanase headed an added-time reply for the visitors who had squandered several chances in the closing stages. Bosnia-Herzegovina lead Group H on nine points after Edin Dzeko scored the only goal in a 1-0 victory home over San Marino. Romania, Cyprus and Austria all have three points.
