Late Sturridge goals steals 3 points for England
2nd half goals from substitues Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge gave England a much-needed win over Wales in Lens in Group B of Euro 2016.
A wonderful free-kick (combined with poor goalkeeping from Joe Hart) from Gareth Bale for Wales gave the Dragons the lead before half time, after an uninspiring half from England with below-par performances from certain players.
Raheem Sterling fluffed an early clear chance when he got on the end of an Adam Lallana cross inside the 6 yard box, but his needless streching meant he could only fire over the bar in front of the Wales fans.
There were limited chances for both teams in the opening 45 minutes, England could have possibly had a penalty when Ben Davies appeared to shove Spurs teammate Deli Alli in the box.
Gary Cahill had a chance not long after as he got on the end of a Wayne Rooney free-kick swung in from the left-hand side, but he couldn’t get enough on it, and Wayne Hennesey gathered it easily.
There were huge appeals for a penalty as a header from Kane deflected down and hit Davies’ outstretched hand inside the six-yard box, nothing was given however and replays showed it was unlikely to be deliberate handball.
Bale’s wonderful strike after 42 minutes finally opened the scoring, and England went into the dressing room behind to their British rivals. The Nation were convinced changes were needed, and manager Roy Hodgson recognised that and replaced both Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane at half time, with Daniel Sturridge and Jamie Vardy.
They both proved to be vital in the rest of the game’s events. Vardy scored 11 minutes after the restart as a ball floated in from Sturridge came off Wales captain Ashley Williams, and fell to Vardy who hammered in from close range. Wales were claiming offside but it was a fantastic spot from the officals to see who the final touch came off before the ball fell to Vardy.
From there until the end, England were dominant, but frustrating. There were rarely clear opportunites created. Sturridge hit 2 wild efforts high and wide, and hit a misqued shot in the box that could have proven to be a good chance. Lallana was eventually replaced by 18-year old Marcus Rashford, who enjoyed a bright start to his competitive England career, knocking it around and looking like a breath of fresh air during his time on the field.
It felt like it was heading for a draw, but with just a minute left, Sturridge started the move himself on the edge of the area, playing the ball to Vardy who flicked it to Dele Alli and back into the path of Sturridge to prod beyond Hennessey at the near post.
It leaves England top of Group B with 4 points, ahead of Wales and Slovakia. If England can get just a point against Slovakia, it guarentees them a 3rd place finish and at least a chance of heading through to the round of 16. For Wales, they need to stay positive, they’re still in the competition, and if they can beat Russia, they too will guarentee a spot in the next stage of Euro 2016.
Today is England’s day, however.
By Ben Kelly – @benkelly_10
