Player Ratings: England 1-0 Czech Republic

A game in which failed to live up to expectations as England ambled towards another 1-0 victory, consequently setting up a Round of 16 tie against either Portugal, France, or Germany next week.

Jordan Pickford: 7/10

The Everton goalkeeper secured his third clean sheet in as many games to ensure England finished top of the Group D, however, the goalkeeper’s instincts were rarely called upon as the opponents forced Pickford in to just a single save over the course of the game. Despite this, the goalkeeper impressed with his versatile distribution range, attempting twenty long balls and twenty-eight short passes; leading to him accumulating a pass completion rate of 84%.

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Kyle Walker: 7/10

Having been dropped for England’s second game of the tournament after a disappointing performance, it was the Manchester City full-back who was tasked with the manager’s trust to earn his nation their second win of the tournament and subsequently their third consecutive clean sheet. It was an improved display on this occasion, completing six of nine long balls and fifty accurate passes, showing he had a heavy influence on switching the ball towards the midfield to retain possession.

The wing-back’s defensive instincts also appeared at the forefront of his performance, winning 100% of his ground duels, 95% of his aerial battles — completing two interceptions and one clearance to stand strong and deny an opponent who had found the back of the net on three occasions previously in the tournament.

Harry Maguire: 6/10

Having seemingly knocked off any injury doubts, it was obvious manager Gareth Southgate intended on giving the Manchester United captain some vital minutes to acclimatize to the surroundings and build up his match sharpness. It was a comfortable outing for the centre-back, winning 100% of his ground duels, but failing to win any of his aerial duels.

Nevertheless, his range of passing was fruitful, with the intention of moving the ball forward and into the wide channels. Certainly a performance to build on whilst leaving Southgate with real selection difficulties as several centre-backs have shown strong qualities thus far.

John Stones: 7/10

Having completed just shy of 79 minutes of action, the Manchester City defender adapted well to his new partner, Harry Maguire. Having formed a formidable partnership with Tyrone Mings, England’s opponents will have been confident of asking questions of a new look defense to which The Three Lions passed with flying colors.

A 95% pass accuracy, 100% long pass accuracy, three clearances, two interceptions, and winning 93% of his headers exemplified the dominant performance that the Englishman had against the likes of Czech forward, Patrik Schick.

Luke Shaw: 6/10

The Manchester United full-back found himself starting his second consecutive game, with sixty-eight touches, two key passes, and one big chance created; it certainly was a free-flowing performance. However, the full-back lost possession on fourteen occasions whilst only completing one of his six crosses, failing to provide sufficient creativity to the forward players.

Declan Rice: 5/10

The West Ham midfielder only saw forty-five minutes worth of action, being withdrawn at the interval due to his inability to retain possession, whilst conceding needless fouls and applying unnecessary pressure to the back four.

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Kalvin Phillips: 6/10

A third consecutive start from the Leeds United midfielder saw him once again operate the role situated just in front of defensive midfielder, Declan Rice; with the purpose of creating space and passing lines for his midfield partner or carrying the ball forward.

Jack Grealish: 7/10

The Aston Villa captain made his first start for England at an international tournament. His game started strongly, carrying the ball with intent and purpose, while drawing fouls from the opposition and collectively progressing the attack. His close control allowed him to work his way towards the edge of the area, providing a delicate cross for the lurking Raheem Sterling for the winning goal in the game.

Bukayo Saka: 8/10

A man of the match performance on his first start of the tournament; excited fans and pundits with his fresh, unpredictable decision making in which caused problems for the opposition defense. The Arsenal youngster’s relentless running with and without the ball drew defenders out of position, creating space for others on the pitch to exploit — as exemplified in England’s lone goal as Saka made a decoy run to allow the unmarked Raheem Sterling the simple task of finishing off a close finish into an open net.

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Raheem Sterling: 6/10

Scoring his second goal of the tournament, the Manchester City attacker remains the only player to have scored a goal at the tournament for England throughout the duration of the group stages. Despite his winning goal, the attacker could have scored another as his chip over the keeper from range agonizingly crashed against the post.

After his early contribution, the attacker endured a quiet game, failing to continue making a positive impact on proceedings with only twenty-nine touches of the ball, while losing possession nine times and failing to beat the offside trap on more than one occasion.

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Harry Kane: 6/10

The Tottenham Hotspur striker created his first shot on target of the tournament so far. However, that was to be his only shot on target and sadly, it was not an effort capable of troubling the opposition keeper.

With only a 54% pass accuracy, it is evident the England captain was naive in possession; backed up by the fact he conceded possession a whopping eighteen times. If England are to reach their potential in this tournament, it is essential that Kane finds his regular goal scoring form sooner rather than later.

Jordan Henderson (SUB) 6/10

Marcus Rashford (SUB) 5/10

Jude Bellingham (SUB) 6/10

Tyrone Mings (SUB) 6/10

Jadon Sancho (SUB) 6/10

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