England Report Cards: Sterling nets winner as Three Lions defeat Croatia

A professional performance from Gareth Southgate's side was enough to see off World Cup finalists Croatia.

At last, the European Championship has arrived. EURO 2020 began on Friday evening with Italy defeating Turkey 3-0 in Rome. On Saturday, a medical emergency involving Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen threatened to derail the tournament. However, with the former Spurs midfielder recovering in hospital, play continued in Copenhagen and St. Petersburg, with Finnish and Belgian wins following Wales’ draw with Switzerland.

Today, as the sun shone across the country, Gareth Southgate’s England took to the field for the first time at the tournament. Their opposition, Croatia, are familiar foes – ones who eliminated the Three Lions from the 2018 World Cup.

Southgate – as expected – upset many England fans before kick-off by leaving Aston Villa talisman Jack Grealish on the bench. Meanwhile, Kieran Trippier was installed at left-back – with Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling operating ahead of him on the same flank.

Despite the controversy surrounding England’s starting XI, Southgate’s side started brightly. Phil Foden hit the post early on, with Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips also testing Dominik Livakovic in the opening exchanges.

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In the aftermath, the pace of the game slowed. Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric grew into the game as his former Spurs teammate Kyle Walker struggled at right-back for England.

After much huffing and puffing, England blew the house down on 56 minutes. Assisted by Kalvin Phillips, Raheem Sterling broke into the penalty area and fired a shot under the arm of Croatia’s goalkeeper. Lift-off for England, vindication for Raheem Sterling MBE.

Throughout the tournament, The Boar Sport will be publishing ‘report card’ articles following England matches. In each piece, you – the reader – will find a brief summary of the match (see above) and analysis of each England player’s performance (see below).

So, onto the individual observations!

Player of the Match:

Kalvin Phillips – The Yorkshire Pirlo was England’s best performer… and by some distance. The perfect partner to Declan Rice in central midfield, Phillips showed his ball-playing ability in possession and capacity to break the lines off the ball.

Phillips completed 94 percent of his passes, including all of his through- and long-balls. He lead the game in ball recoveries (seven) and completed two take-ons. That stats, on this occasion, don't lie.

In the first half, as England mindlessly moved the ball around the midfield, it was Phillips who darted in behind the Croatian defence.

He was (correctly) flagged offside – but his keenness to support Harry Kane in attack will have pleased Southgate.

Phillips’ assist was better than Sterling’s goal. The Leeds United midfielder received the ball on the halfway line, turned towards goal and threaded the ball in the direction of the onrushing Sterling.

Football matches are won in moments. It was Phillips’ moment today.

A

Raheem Sterling – Although it didn’t always come off for the Manchester City winger, Sterling was a constant pain in the side of Croatia’s defenders. Marseille centre back Duje Caleta-Car, in particular, had a torrid time when tasked with dealing with Sterling in the first half.

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The 26-year-old took his goal with aplomb – capping off a positive performance.

A –

Phil Foden – As noted, the Manchester City sensation started the game brightly, striking the base of the post after five minutes of play at Wembley. Foden’s assignment against Croatia was to exercise creative freedom from the right flank – drift inside when possible, operation assist Harry Kane.

Replaced by Marcus Rashford with 20 minutes remaining, Foden faded as the game progressed. Though, for a 21-year-old at his first major tournament, the Stockport-born creator will be pleased with his display.

B +

Declan Rice – The former Republic of Ireland international won’t receive tonnes of credit for his performance against Croatia (it wasn’t flashy) – but Rice deserves props for his play under the Wembley sun.

A calming influence in central midfield, Rice performed his duties well – as evidenced by the fact that Jordan Pickford had a fairly quiet afternoon.

Confident in possession when dropping between England’s centre backs, Rice earns a solid B + for The Boar.

B

Harry Kane – It was a fairly quiet afternoon for the wantaway Spurs forward. Besides from when he wrapped himself around the post in the second half, Kane was somewhat anonymous. He wasn’t England’s stand-out attacking player.

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However, the Three Lions captain pressed well and was a threat from set-plays before he was replaced by Jude Bellingham on 81 minutes.

Mason Mount – Tasked with providing creativity through the centre, Mount was lively – especially in the first half. It wasn’t a vintage performance from the Chelsea academy prospect, although he did demonstrate his ability to play in multiple positions in the closing stages.

From 47 touches, Mount completed 93 percent of his passes against Croatia - his ability to retain possession (rather than making plays) is so important to England's approach.

As expected, Mount is a player Southgate will trust in the big moments – he’ll be seeing a lot of game time as a result.

Tyrone Mings and John Stones – Given both of England’s centre backs enjoyed a routine afternoon at the office, it makes sense to grade them together.

Croatia – besides the occasional long shot from Modric – were not particularly threatening. Mings and Stones looked comfortable throughout and steered clear of any mishaps. In lieu of Harry Maguire’s return, Southgate will be pleased with how his central defenders have opened the tournament.

B -

Kieran Trippier – Controversially, the Atletico Madrid star was selected to play left back – a position he hasn’t played at club level all season. Despite that, Trippier was England’s best right back on Saturday afternoon – his performance was much more assured than that of Kyle Walker (more on him soon).

In a 4-2-3-1, you would perhaps like to see slightly more attacking threat from full-back – although it is hard to Trippier too harshly in that area, given he was playing on the ‘wrong’ side.

C

Kyle Walker – It was a shaky performance from Walker, who didn’t look particularly comfortable. With Foden tucking inside, there were also opportunities for the City full-back to break into the final third. He didn’t.

Walker gets a C for his efforts, which might be charitable.(1) Zach Lowy on Twitter: "Southgate needs to bring on Reece Hames or switch Kieran Trippier to the right, Kyle Walker’s link-up play has been pretty abysmal so far." / Twitter

Nothing To See:

Jordan Pickford – As noted, it wasn’t a busy day at the office for Everton’s shot-stopper. Croatia’s two shots on target should tell the story. Pickford showed confidence to make a catch from a looping cross in the second minute of extra time. Job done.

Marcus Rashford, Jude Bellingham, Dominic Calvert-Lewin – Subbed on in the second period, Southgate’s backup cast did little of note (which isn’t a criticism).

Team Report:

It was a solid performance from England. Not too hot. Not too cold. More than good enough to put an ageing Croatian side to the sword.

With only eight teams eliminated from EURO 2020 following the completion of the group stage, the Three Lions need just one more point to reach the round of sixteen.

England are over the first hurdle - let's see how Southgate's squad fares against Scotland, in the oldest game in world football.

Next Up:

Scotland versus England, June 18 – 20:00, ITV Sport

Future Thoughts:

The main question mark for Gareth Southgate heading into the second game of EURO 2020 relates to Jadon Sancho – will he feature in the matchday squad against Scotland? Likewise, how will England approach their full-back situation against the Auld Enemy? With three points on the board, changes could be afoot for the Three Lions.