England qualified for the 2026 World Cup with a comfortable 5-0 win over Latvia in Riga. A superb finish from Anthony Gordon and a clinical goal from captain Harry Kane gave the Three Lions a 3-0 lead and they were in full control at half-time.
And the visitors beat Krishanis Zoubiedris twice more in the second half with an own goal from Maximus Tonisev and a curler goal from Eberechi Eze to hand Thomas Tuchel’s side another clear victory. The defeat means the German head coach will take his 26-man team to the United States, Canada and Mexico next summer with the dream of bringing soccer home for the first time since 1966. Express Sport assesses and predicts further victories for the England international…
England vs Latvia player ratings
Jordan Pickford – 7
On a night where he was rarely in trouble, he extended his streak of shutouts to a record-tying nine games. Only one thing needed to be saved.
Jed Spence – 7
He moved back to right-back for this game and looked just as comfortable at left-back as he did against Wales. His wonderful cross gave England their fourth goal.
John Stones – 7
Another classy performance from a classy defender. He used the ball really well. What Gordon found before scoring was a pass over the top of him.
Ezri Konsa – 7
In the first half, they were in good positions to stop Latvia’s counterattack, and in the second half, they made some great recovery tackles to stop their opponent’s counterattack. A display you can trust. I made a reservation.
Miles Lewis-Skelly – 6
The final product could have been better, but it was fun moving forward. He was forced out of position in the first half and found himself on the receiving end of Tuchel’s shot-off.
Declan Rice – 6
Some awful set-piece deliveries and one corner almost going straight into goal.
Elliot Anderson – 7
He recorded the most touches of any England starter and was once again key in Tuchel’s side’s complete dominance. He missed a few shots on target when he could have done better, but other than that he was very impressive.
Bukayozaka – 7
He helped win the ball back for Kane’s goal and also provided an assist. Not his absolute best considering Latvia put a lot of bodies around him, but he was still a very dangerous player when given space.
Morgan Rogers – 6
His influence was limited because there was not much space to work in the center. If Anderson had done better with his first chance, he might have still had an assist.
Anthony Gordon – 8
Following his energetic performance against Wales, he showed another threatening performance. Kane’s shot early on was a good ball, but he missed it and in the 26th minute he cut inside and slotted into the far corner for a wonderful goal, England’s second.
Harry Kane – 8
Truly elite. After taking an early chance with his side, he finished brilliantly with his left foot to score England’s 75th goal, the ball curling past Zoubiedris and into the corner. He scored in the 76th minute from the penalty spot, shortly after his header was well saved. The free kick they took in the second half went wide, but there were few chances to score the third bar.
substitute
Jordan Henderson (Rice 60) – 6
It helped me keep my foot on the gas.
Eberechi Eze (Rogers 60) – 7
Immediately after coming on, he forced a save with a low shot, then cut inside and curled it into the bottom corner.
Jarrod Bowen (Saka60) – 7
Eze won possession and delivered a great through ball to score.
Marcus Rashford (Gordon 71) – 6
He is currently losing the left wing battle to Anthony Gordon.
Dan Byrne (Stones 71) – 6
It’s been solid since I came.
