England eventually ground down Bosnia and Herzegovina to clinch a 3-0 win at a sold-out St James’ Park in their penultimate warm-up game before Euro 2024.
A much-changed Three Lions side were frustrated by a team sitting 74th in the FIFA rankings until Cole Palmer converted a soft penalty to break the deadlock on the hour mark.
The St James’ Park crowd then enjoyed late goals from Trent Alexander-Arnold, who met Jack Grealish’s cross with a crisp volley, and Harry Kane, who poked home following a goalmouth scramble.
Gareth Southgate will not be overly concerned by the lacklustre performance England produced in the opening 60 minutes but will hope to see more fluidity on Friday night when his side face Iceland in their final game before travelling to Germany for the Euros.
England are one of the favourites to win Euro 2024, having reached the latter stages of the last three major tournaments, including the last Euros when they reached the final only to be beaten on penalties by Italy.
WINNERS
Eberechi Eze
Given his stunning form towards the end of the season for a revitalised Crystal Palace, it was no surprise to see the 25-year-old shine under the St James’ Park lights.
He finished the season with eight goals and four assists in Palace’s final 12 games, forcing his way into England’s provisional squad and, on tonight’s basis, the final 26.
Blessed with a burst of pace rarely seen, even at the top level, Eze threatened pretty much every time he got on the ball with positive and direct dribbles. He skinned his marker to win an early free-kick and then created a chance for Ezri Konsa.
Eze’s performance was as crucial to his Euros hopes as it was for Southgate as left-wing is as open as any position in the England team following Marcus Rashford’s somewhat surprising omission.
Anthony Gordon has flourished in that role for Newcastle United – scoring 11 goals and providing 10 assists in 35 Premier League games last season – while Grealish is hoping to book a flight to Germany despite an underwhelming campaign for the champions. But right now, it looks impossible to leave out Eze.
Discussing Eze’s performance at half-time, ex-England midfielder Joe Cole said on Channel 4: ‘He’s been the bright spark. He’s brave and gets on the ball. You need players who can take players out of the game with one move and he does that.’
Cole Palmer
Another player in sensational form, the Chelsea playmaker scored his first England goal, driving home a second-half penalty after Konsa was adjudged to have been dragged back from a corner.
There was an air of inevitability when Palmer placed the ball on the penalty spot – after all, he converted all nine he took for Chelsea in the Premier League last season.
Palmer is far from a pen merchant, though, and scored another 13 goals from open play (while making 12 assists) in a superb first season at Stamford Bridge following a £40m move from Manchester City last summer.
It was impossible for Southgate to ignore the Premier League’s young player of the season and he looks set for a trip to Germany after another impressive performance this evening.
Palmer didn’t have much of the ball in the first half but looked a cut above every time he was involved, creating half-chances for his team-mates as he popped up in dangerous positions in the final third.
‘Most things are coming through Cole Palmer, he looks like he can unlock that door,’ ex-England defender Jonathan Woodgate said on BBC Radio 5 Live shortly before he broke the deadlock.
On Palmer’s goal, Woodgate added: ‘It’s really good penalty from Cole. He has shown it all season for Chelsea with penalties. This time he easily converts it and that is another reason why he should be going to the Euros – he is an incredible penalty taker.’
The glaring issue for Palmer, however, is how he gets in the team once Champions League winner Jude Bellingham and Premier League player of the season Phil Foden return to international duty.
Other winners: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jarrod Bowen
Up Next
LOSERS
Marc Guehi
Eze’s Crystal Palace team-mate had a good opportunity to stake a claim in the Euros team as England continue to sweat over the fitness of Harry Maguire, who missed Manchester United’s last four games of the season, including the FA Cup final.
Maguire and fellow Old Trafford star Luke Shaw both linked up with the England squad early to work with the Three Lions’ medical staff, with the former thought to be closer to a return than injury-prone left-back Shaw.
But Maguire’s absence at St James’ Park and likely absence on Friday night for England’s final warm-up game against Iceland has certainly opened the door to Guehi, who made his international debut in 2022.
Guehi was sidelined for three months earlier in the year but made a long-awaited comeback just in time to be named in Southgate’s provisional squad.
Impressing against Bosnia and Herzegovina would have given the England boss another welcome selection dilemma but on this evening’s showing he may be keeping his fingers crossed that Maguire can return for the first group game against Serbia on June 16.
There were no costly errors from Guehi but a rash foul on the half-hour mark led to the only yellow card England received, while he could have been punished when carelessly giving the ball away shortly after.
He was subbed off just after England took the lead and Southgate may want to take a closer look at his replacement, Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite, next time out.
Ivan Toney
Following a surprisingly poor end to the season, the Brentford striker needed a chance to show Southgate he is in good enough form to be Harry Kane’s back-up in Germany, but he remained on the bench against Bosnia.
Toney’s presence, quality and ruthlessness from the spot has led many pundits to suggest he should travel with England’s squad this summer, but there’s every chance he drops out.
With Harry Kane dismissing any injury concerns by coming on for the final 30 minutes – and scoring his 63rd England goal – Southgate may be tempted to only take one other striker to the Euros.
And if he does, the stats only point to one player. Toney has five goals in 18 appearances since returning from his betting ban and went 12 games without a goal at the end of the season. In stark contract, Ollie Watkins – who started against Bosnia – enjoyed his most prolific campaign, netting 19 goals and providing more assists than any other player in the division.
Toney may well feature more on Friday – though Southgate has already confirmed Kane will start – but even an impressive cameo against Iceland may not be enough to earn him a place on the plane, especially if Southgate decides two strikers will suffice.
Other losers: Curtis Jones, James Maddison
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