England far too hot for lowly minnows

Andorra 0 England 5 Chilwell 17, Saka 40, Abraham 59, Ward-Prowse 79, Grealish 86

THEY put out the fire on Friday, after it had threatened to engulf the far side of the Estadi Nacional.

An Andorran welder working on a temporary television gantry got the blame for that.

By last night, the affected parts of the plastic pitch had been relaid and it was only England bringing the heat. This time, the locals were powerless to douse the flames.

It was always going to be like this, of course. Andorra have only won eight games in their 25-year history and their chief contribution to yesterday’s game was to kick everything that moved and that did not often include the ball.

If the 5-0 win was easy for Gareth Southgate’s players, it made for rather a tough baptism for Ukrainian referee Kateryna Monzul, the first woman to referee an England men’s team match.

England played their first away match against Andorra 14 years ago and it remains one of the ugliest nights in the team’s history.

England’s players were booed and jeered relentlessly by their own fans at the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona. They won 3-0 in the end, but the fans called for Steve McClaren, then England manager, to be sacked and hurled insults at him throughout the game.

That match was in March 2007, a qualifier for the 2008 European Championships. England didn’t even make it to the big party. And so, yes, it was ‘only Andorra’ last night but it was still possible to detect in the vibrancy of the England performance and the talent, youth, optimism and confidence that this team will challenge at the Qatar World Cup.

Phil Foden was mesmerisingly good in midfield, Bukayo Saka was superb on the right side of attack, James Ward-Prowse was an accomplished deputy at the heart of the team, Ben Chilwell was a source of relentless energy and attacking threat.

It was only Andorra but England’s performance still brought plenty of reasons for their fans to smile.

At a stadium with a capacity of 3306, set against a spectacular backdrop of the Pyrenees, England refused to allow any hint of complacency to creep in.

They dominated from the opening minute and Andorra had to make a series of urgent defensive interventions early on. They have had plenty of practice at that over the years, of course, and when Foden drifted a lovely diagonal ball into the path of Chilwell as he rushed into the box, it took a diving save by Josep Gomes Moreira to smother the chance.

Another ball from Foden found Chilwell unmarked in the area again soon after and England’s left-back should have scored with his header rather than directing it weakly wide. England, by the way, had 92 per cent of possession.

Chilwell did not take long to make amends. Another lofted pass from Foden in the 17th minute found Jadon Sancho ghosting in behind the Andorra defence.

He controlled the ball and laid it back to Chilwell, who lashed it in from ten yards out. One of the assistants flagged for offside but after a lengthy VAR delay, the goal was allowed to stand.

Five minutes before half-time, England went further ahead. Another brilliant pass from Foden released Saka and he raced into the box and smashed the ball emphatically past Gomes Moreira and into the roof of the net.

Just before the hour, England went 3-0 up. Tammy Abraham, who has made such an impressive start for Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma side in Serie A, had led England’s line well in his first appearance for the national team for four years and now he got the goal he deserved. Sancho whipped in a cross from the left and Abraham got to it before the goalkeeper and diverted it expertly into the net.

Abraham (pictured), devastated to miss out on the summer’s European Championship finals, is desperate to stay at the forefront of the manager’s World Cup planning.

‘It was a good night for me and the boys,’ he said. ‘Jadon told me at half-time that sometimes he’s going to cut back on his right and try to find me in the middle of the goal and that I should be ready.

‘Going to Roma shows that I’m clearly doing the right things and it’s just the start, hopefully. I’m playing every week and hopefully I can keep performing.’

Substitute Jack Grealish was brought down in the box 13 minutes from time. Ward-Prowse’s spot-kick was saved by Gomes Moreira but the England midfield man got to the rebound first and hooked it into the net.

Fiyako Tomori contributed a cultured second-half cameo and even Sam Johnstone got in on the act in the closing minutes. The West Brom keeper had been little more than a bystander but he made a fine one-handed save from Andorra’s first chance and then, a minute later, gathered a high ball and his long throw found Grealish breaking over the halfway line.

Grealish raced clear and when he was caught by a defender, he cut inside and placed a precision shot past Gomes Moreira. Grealish had a goal, Johnstone had an assist. It was the perfect end to a good night for England in the Pyrenees.

ENGLAND (4-3-3): Johnstone; Trippier, Stones (Tomori 60), Coady, Chilwell; Lingard (Mount 73), Ward-Prowse, Foden; Saka, Abraham (Watkins 80), Sancho (Grealish 73).

Subs (not used): Rice, Mings, Ramsdale, Kane, Henderson, Sterling, Walker, Pickford.

Booked: Stones, Sancho, Coady.

Referee: Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine).