Luke's Football blog

Form Going Into The Game

England came into this game with a comfortable 4-0 win against Malta, where Trent Alexander-Arnold ran the show in his new position under Southgate; however, North Macedonia will be a test for them as they have never beaten them at home before.

North Macedonia came into this game with a narrow defeat to Ukraine at home, which would’ve dampened their spirits going into the game against England at Old Trafford.

Line Ups

England made 3 changes from the win against Malta, with 2 Man City boys coming into the starting line-up for Guehi and Trippier, and Rashford also came in from the start replacing Maddison to make it a very strong line-up.

North Macedonia opted for a different formation, switching to the 3-5-2, against England, opting for an extra midfielder to give them more defensive stability. They made one change to the back three as Velkovski came in for the suspended Musliu.

The Game

The game started nervy, with North Macedonia keeping out England so far with some good defensive action; however, it didn’t take long for England to take the lead as Shaw’s cutback got deflected into the path of Kane, who calmly tucked it in, giving England the lead.

It was soon 2-0 as Rashford’s cross hit Henderson on his body before he could react, leaving his effort to travel wide; however, it would soon be 2-0 as Walker’s low cross picked out Saka, who slammed it past Dimitrevski, leaving him no chance.

Then, just before halftime, it was 3-0 as Kane and Henderson put the pressure on the North Macedonian defence, which proved crucial in the end as Henderson squared it to Rashford, who slotted it into the middle of the goal to make it 3-0 just before halftime.

The second half started, and soon after it was 4-0 as a defence-splitting ball from Trent playing in the midfield role came through to Saka, who applied an incredible finish, almost taking the net off by smashing it into the top left corner.

Saka would get his third of the game and his first senior hatrick in football as Kane sent a perfect through ball into the path of the winger, who slotted it into the bottom left corner, capping off a stellar performance from the 21-year-old.

12 minutes later it would be 6 as Kalvin Phillips slotted the ball into an empty net as Grealish had his cross blocked. That was his first goal for England and that will do a lot of confidence for him after a tough year with injury problems had hampered his development a bit so this goal will be a massive confidence boost for him.

Then 9 minutes later, it was 7. Bejtulai pulled down John Stones from a corner, with the ref giving a penalty, which Kane coolly slotted home to make it 7 and give him his second goal of the game.

The game ended 7-0 to cap off another great campaign for England, who are now one win away from the Euros in Berlin next summer, and with a good crop of players at the helm at the moment, I’m sure they will have another good Euros campaign that could possibly lead them to glory.

Player of the Match- Bukayo Saka

There was only one name I could’ve used for this, and it’s Bukayo Saka. He lit up the game from start to finish, tormenting the North Macedonian defence.

His 3 goals were so deserved as he was causing problems all game and he is just brimming with confidence after a good campaign for arsenal where they came up short in the league so he will hope to have another successful campaign with his club and produce more amazing moments.

He will certainly be one of the main men next year for Southgate at the Euros, as his pace and trickery will be the key to opening defences across Europe, and if he is brimming with confidence, he will be hard to stop. He is only 21, so he still has an amazing career ahead of him, and if he can keep up this form, he will be unstoppable.

How I Rate The Game- 8/10

I’m giving this an 8/10. Being able to watch it in person was so amazing, and the atmosphere was incredible, people were singing the whole game, and the thrill of being there was just the best.

The goals were taken so coolly, and you can just see the talent brimming across the pitch. If Southgate can get them to play like this every week, then it will be hard for opponents to stop.

The midfield is so strong, and with Trent playing in the midfield in a new role, which he’s been working on with Klopp and Southgate in recent weeks, with Declan Rice on top of his game at the moment, and with Bellingham, if he stays fit, coming in, it will be a hard midfield to beat and something that will offer defensive and attacking stability with a huge mix of players in that midfield offering different strengths.

With the midfield offering a lot of strength, it allows the attackers to focus on their game, and with the young talent England have on the wing with Saka, Grealish, and Rashford on top of their game at the moment, it’s going to be a hard time for defenders across Europe.

Overall, I feel confident in Southgate. People like to criticise him, which is fair, as in the past he has tended to sit back after scoring against a strong opponent, which has cost him in the end, but I feel with more experience he will learn from his mistakes, and he has a year to gather a core of strong players who are willing to fight for him and take England to glory in Berlin next year.