Jesse Lingard scored the only goal of the game on Friday evening as England secured a tight 1-0 friendly victory over Holland at the Amsterdam ArenA.
Following a somewhat timid first-half, the Manchester United man reacted well to blast the visitors ahead with a guided, low finish from the edge of the area on the hour mark.
England start promisingly
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was the first to have a real shot in anger as he found space but Jeroen Zoet collected his powerful effort comfortably. Injury problems were to hit England within the opening ten minutes as Liverpool man Joe Gomez was withdrawn for Harry Maguire.
Lingard was the next to find a route to goal as he combined well with Raheem Sterling but could only pull his effort from the edge of the area wide of the far post.
All-square at the break
As a matter of fact, the theme of the first-half were pot-shots from range and Matthijs de Ligt also tested Jordan Pickford from range but the Everton man gathered well.
Three Lions’ skipper Jordan Henderson had the best chance of the first-half as he found space from a free-kick. His flicked header though just bounced wide of goal. Bas Dost also had a great chance from a corner but only served to loft a free header over the bar.
Memphis Depay broke on England in the closing stages of the opening period following a poor throw-in but shot straight at Pickford with a low effort. A competitive but ultimately chance-sparse first came to a close with neither side finding the net.
Promise from the Three Lions
England begun the second-period much as they had ended the first; with plenty of endeavour but really lacking any cutting edge. They thought they were made to pay as Stefan de Vrij stabbed home from a corner but the referee signalled that the ball had gone out of play.
There were appeals from Gareth Southgate’s men for a penalty as Marcus Rashford raced through and tumbled in the box following a challenge from Zoet. The referee however was unmoved.
England did eventually snatch the lead and it was Jesse Lingard who scored his first goal for England. Danny Rose attempted a low cross but the ball was cut out and cleared to the edge of the area. The Manchester United forward did well to guide the ball low into the bottom corner beyond Zoet.
Netherlands attempt to react
Going behind almost re-invigorated Ronald Koeman’s men as two chances came and went. First, Quincy Promes saw his shot deflected over before Dost was not able to react quick enough to turn a low cross beyond Pickford.
Depay was afforded a chance from a free-kick approximately 25 yards from goal but Pickford caught the Dutchman’s effort very well.
Heading into the final ten minutes, Kieran Trippier did have a chance to confirm the win but an excellent stop from Zoet kept the advantage to only one. That was how the score-line stayed as Gareth Southgate secured a morale-boosting victory with a young England side.
Final Thoughts
It was by no means a classic in Amsterdam as England edged ahead of the hosts. There were a few promising performances however as the likes of Lingard, Maguire, Stones and Henderson all stood out. The victory will give the squad considerable confidence going into the final few months before the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Holland meanwhile were somewhat disappointing. Koeman’s troops really struggled to test Pickford and indeed the England defence as the visitors came a way with a much-deserved victory.
Match Report
Netherlands: Zoet (6); de Ligt (7), de Vrij (7) (Weghorst (N/A), 89′), van Dijk (6); Hateboer (6), Wijnaldum (6), Strootman (6) (van de Beek (N/A), 90′), van Aanholt (7); Promes (7) (Pröpper (6), 66′), Dost (6) (Babel (6), 66′); Depay (7).
England: Pickford (7); Stones (8), Gomez (N/A) (Maguire (7), 10′ (Dier (N/A), 89′)), Walker (7); Trippier (7), Oxlade-Chamberlain (6), Henderson (8), Rose (7) (Young (7), 71′); Sterling (7) (Welbeck (6), 68′), Lingard (8) (Alli (6), 68′), Rashford (7) (Vardy (6), 68′).
Goals: Lingard (59′)
Referee: Jesus Gil Manzano
Yellow Cards: N/A
Red Cards: N/A
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