England secured a place in round 16 after the Lions demolished the Dragons in a glorious second half performance with goals from Manchester’s own revitalized Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden who finally made his first World Cup 2022 debut.
The first 45 minutes was a slow start creating no real opportunities for either teams but England managed the ball nicely, keeping it primarily in the Welsh half.
Jude Bellingham impressed early on once again with some lovely fast paced build-up play before finding Foden who’s shot blazed into the crowd.
The Three Lions came out from the break refuelled with energy, with an early free kick awarded but with Kieran Trippier not on the pitch the responsibility fell to Rashford who did not disappoint and with perfect precision the ball flew into the net for his first of the night.
Just seconds later the score was doubled when Harry Kane whipped the ball across the face of goal with Foden at the back post finding the finish. A move only possible after Southgate finally listened to his critics regarding Foden’s appearance.
Just 18 minutes after his opener Rashford scored his second and the match’s final goal of the night.
He went alone after receiving the ball up field from Kalvin Phillips, diving towards the goal before cutting inside and getting a shot off. Arguably keeper Danny Ward (who replaces Wales’s number one, Wayne Hennessey after his red card during their last match against Iran for a dangerously high tackle on Mehdi Taremi) should have reacted better as the ball went through his legs but the power got the better of him.
Rashford’s second goal also gifted England their 100th goal scored at a World Cup.
Wales’s performance was lacklustre at best with captain Gareth Bale being substituted during half-time with a thigh injury not helping.
The dragons had clearly felt the demands of the tournament with players frequently substituted and less shots at the goal being taken but more fouls on the men in white taking place throughout the game, including a potential injury-inducing tackle on Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson by Aaron Ramsey who received the only yellow card of the game as a result.
England fans needed a response after the 0-0 draw against USA and they weren’t left disappointed, a much better performance from the boys who dominated the ball against a poor Wales who posed minimal threat. The lions soar to the top of Group B with their next opponents being Senegal on Sunday.