Harry Kane spared woeful England’s blushes as his second-half strike sealed a lacklustre 1-0 win against minnows Andorra in Saturday’s World Cup qualifier in Barcelona.
Thomas Tuchel’s side were booed off by England fans in the RCDE Stadium after struggling to impress against a team ranked 173rd in the world.
Kane’s 72nd international goal ensured England avoided the ultimate embarrassment of failing to beat such lowly opposition.
Tuchel is the first England manager to win his first three competitive games without conceding a goal.
But given the paucity of opposition provided by Andorra, Latvia and Albania in the Group K qualifiers, that achievement rings a little hollow after this miserable display.
“I’m not happy with the performance. We completely lost the momentum and couldn’t get it back. We ended up in a place that was not good enough in terms of urgency,” Tuchel said.
“We can just admit it that it’s not what we expect from us. I was most worried in the last 20 minutes because I didn’t like the attitude we ended the game with.
“I didn’t like the lack of urgency. It did not match the occasion. It is still a World Cup qualifier.”
Tuchel had warned that England’s tired stars should not be expected to thrash Andorra after gruelling domestic seasons.
The German cited the motivational difficulties posed by the summer international break, just before nine of his players jet off to the Club World Cup in the United States.
His fears proved prescient as England laboured to establish any rhythm in a soporific match with the feel of a pre-season friendly.
It was a far cry from the pulsating drama produced by Spain and France in their recent Nations League semi-final, underlining the task facing Tuchel as he builds up to the 2026 World Cup.
Tuchel didn’t help England’s cause by fielding an experimental side.
Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones started at right-back and Chelsea right-back Reece James featured at left-back.
With Declan Rice rested, Ajax midfielder Jordan Henderson, 34, made his first England start since 2023, becoming the Three Lions’ oldest player since Frank Lampard 11 years ago.
Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka was left out after only completing one training session this week, leaving Noni Madueke, Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer to line up behind striker Harry Kane.
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Bereft of ideas
Chelsea winger Madueke impressed but Palmer and Rogers were underwhelming.
Andorra hadn’t scored an international goal for more than two years and they quickly settled into a defensive formation that allowed England to monopolise possession.
As Tuchel had predicted, England didn’t find it easy to prise open a massed Andorra defence featuring nine men behind the ball at all times.
Madueke’s drive from the edge of the area was pushed away by Andorra keeper Iker Alvarez.
Kane should have broken the deadlock with a close-range chance from Jones’ cut-back, but the England captain prodded wastefully wide.
Given Tuchel’s desire to see his player perform in the warm Catalan temperatures ahead of the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, it was instructive to see England struggle to find the energy and purpose required to make Andorra uncomfortable.
They moved the ball too slowly, and were reduced them to hopeful efforts from distance, with Jude Bellingham’s 25-yard shot comfortably saved by Alvarez.
England looked bereft of ideas and the fans were beginning to grumble.
Kane eased the mounting pressure when the Bayern Munich striker made the breakthrough five minutes after the interval.
After Kane’s initial shot was saved, Madueke alertly guided a low cross back into the six-yard box for the England captain to tap into the empty net.
It was a modest way to reach a milestone for Kane, who has a remarkable 450 career goals for club and country in 697 games.
England still couldn’t find any momentum and were nearly punished in the closing stages when Guillaume Lopez’s shot was blocked by Ezri Konsa.
