England, under the direction of Thomas Tuchel, maintains the same dynamic as with Gareth Southgate: more goals than brilliant play. In his second match in charge, the “Three Lions” defeated a weak Latvia 3-0, dominating the game from start to finish, but without showing the fluidity that many expected.
Tuchel, who made it clear during his time at Chelsea that he doesn’t believe in rotations, fielded up to seven of the same starters who had beaten Albania 2-0 in his debut. Jude Bellingham, who once again dropped back from his attacking midfield position to a double pivot, and Harry Kane, the Bayern Munich striker, were the team’s key figures. Rashford, Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Konsa, and Pickford also retained their places, while Walker, Burn, Jones, and Foden were replaced by James, Guéhi, Rogers, and Bowen.
Despite controlling the game, the England team lacked more attractive play. In fact, Latvia nearly opened the scoring before England did when Gutkovskis found himself with an empty net after a misunderstanding between Guéhi and Pickford, but his angled shot went wide.
As the minutes passed, chances started to emerge, most of them from set pieces, and they were mainly taken by Bellingham. The clearest opportunity came in the 22nd minute when the Real Madrid midfielder headed a ball that hit Rashford’s back, and Konsa capitalized on the rebound to shoot, but the Latvian goalkeeper deflected the ball for a corner.
England’s goal finally came in the 38th minute, once again from a set piece. Reece James took a perfect free-kick over the wall, scoring his first international goal, a significant achievement after a series of injuries that kept him out of the national team for two years.
In the second half, Bellingham nearly got a red card after a harsh challenge on Jurkovskis but stayed on the pitch until the 67th minute when he was replaced by Foden. As soon as Bellingham left, England extended their lead. In the 68th minute, Rogers passed to Rice, who assisted Kane to score the 2-0. With 71 goals to his name, Kane is the all-time top scorer for the England national team.
In the 75th minute, England sealed the win with a 3-0 scoreline. Foden assisted Eze, who, with a series of dribbles, bypassed the defense and shot at goal, with the ball deflecting off Cernomordijs before going in.
Although England could have scored more goals, especially from set pieces, the play was not particularly convincing. Tuchel’s second match produced more goals than good football, and just like with Southgate, the England team has room for improvement in their style of play.
