Euro 2020: England Tops Croatia; Eriksen ‘Was Gone,’ Doctor Says

England 1, Croatia 0

England won its opening game at the European Championship for the first time on Sunday, riding a fast start in the opening minutes and a second-half goal by Raheem Sterling to a 1-0 victory over Croatia under a blazing summer sun at London’s Wembley Stadium.

The day had begun with questions about a curious lineup put out by England’s manager, Gareth Southgate, and concerns that the crowd at London’s Wembley Stadium might boo the home team when it took a knee for social justice right before kickoff.

In each case, the fears did not come to pass. The fans cheered their team, which has said it will continue the gesture before every game, and Southgate’s choices — a defender starting on the wrong side, a young and inexperienced midfield — were not an issue. Kieran Tripper, the flip-flopped back, held his own against the talented (but creaky) Croatian attack, and Kalvin Phillips, the Leeds midfielder inserted into the heart of the team, set up Sterling’s goal.

The lead arrived in the 57th minute, started in England’s half by Kyle Walker, who fed Phillips. Sterling, lying deep in the center watching the play develop, sprinted into a gap and met Phillips’s pass just ahead of a chasing midfielder, a late-arriving defender and a charging goalkeeper.

Raheem Sterling opens the scoring for England!

What a moment at Wembley! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 pic.twitter.com/1lPzXmTPrs

— ESPN (@espn) June 13, 2021

“I always said to myself if I come here, growing up two minutes down the road, I’ve got to score,” Sterling said. “It’s a great feeling doing it.”

The win sent England, for now, to the top of its first-round group. And it will give the team a surge of energy and optimism that things will only get better in coming games against Scotland (on Friday) and the Czech Republic (June 22).

England expects to play most of its games in the tournament at Wembley, but whether it will be back for the semifinals and final at the stadium next month will be determined by more efforts like Sunday’s.

Full time

England 1, Croatia 0. Their first win, ever, in their opening match at a Euros. Please drive home safely.

90’

Four minutes of added time are announced after a brief scare for Bellingham, who was hurt in a head-to-head collision. He stays on, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin comes on for Sterling, the goal-scorer, instead.

England is almost there now …..

82’

Kane, likely still stinging from his brush with the goal post, is off, replaced by 17-year-old Jude Bellingham. The Dortmund player is the youngest player to appear in the tournament.

66’

The yellow cards are starting to add up in Croatia’s center. Brozovic picked one up just now, joining Kovacic and Caleta-Car in the referee’s notebook.

UPDATE: Brozovic’s won’t be a problem today; he’s just been subbed off by Nikola Vlasic.

Foden goes off, for Rashford, in the same break. That’ll bring some pace to England’s attack as Croatia tires in the blistering sun.

62’

Kane went down by the right post after slamming into it after a brave effort on goal. Treated, he’s up now.

57’

GOAL! There’s the breakthrough.

Kyle Walker gets it started from his own half, threading a pass to Phillips pushing up on the right. He cuts left, look up and picks out Sterling, who had dashed in after hanging back in midfield as the play developed. The pass was inch-perfect, and he splits the defense and bangs it past the goalkeeper.

England, 1-0.

46’

Rory Smith checks in from Wembley as the second half resumes:

For 20 minutes, England looked just like the country hoped it could be. Despite the apparent cautiousness in his selection, Gareth Southgate’s team tore into Croatia. Phil Foden hit the post. Raheem Sterling had to be denied at the last moment. Kalvin Phillips drew a fine save from distance.

Croatia — World Cup finalists three years ago, but now an aging, slightly creaking team — could not cope. This was what England had demanded of Southgate this summer: not necessarily victory, not necessarily ultimate triumph, but fun and purpose and adventure. He has a wealth of young attacking talent, after all; it is incumbent on him to find a way to get the best out of it.

As the half wore on, though, the initial energy seemed to fizzle and sputter and, eventually, die out. Croatia held firm, scrapping for territory and possession and control of the rhythm, drawing England into an encounter that suits an older, more experienced side, not one that relies on the brio of youth.

The irony to this game is that it may, in fact, be better not to win it: topping the group, because of the vagaries of the draw, likely means a harder opponent in the last 16 than finishing second in the group. But neither team will want to lose it, either: that would be to take a step too close to the brink. So England must find a way to shake Croatia from its happy meandering, and Croatia must summon the energy to resist the bursts that will come from the host, especially once Southgate turns to his substitutes for reinforcements.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/06/13/sports/euro-2020-live-scores/