Raheem Sterling provided the spark against the Czech Republic at Wembley to fire England through to the knockout stages of Euro 2020 as group winners.
The Manchester City star scored his second of the tournament after 12 minutes to secure the victory and ensure England have a home tie in the last 16 at Wembley next Tuesday.
Manager Gareth Southgate made positive changes after the bore draw with Scotland, including Jack Grealish and Bukayo Saka, and England were the better for it.
England moved into the Euro 2020 knockout stages with a 1-0 win over Czech Republic
Raheem Sterling headed in Jack Grealish’s cross on 12 minutes for the game’s only goal
Sportsmail rates the players and managers from both sides as the Three Lions advance to the last-16…
CZECH REPUBLIC (4-2-3- 1)
Tomas Vaclik – Lucky to get away with Sterling’s early effort that struck a post but had no answer to the Manchester City star’s opener. 6
Vladimir Coufal – Solid enough but the West Ham defender struggled to contain the threat of Sterling and Grealish. 5.5
Ondrej Celustka – Saw plenty of the ball and was the starting point for a couple of dangerous Czech attacks. 6.5
West Ham’s Vladimir Coufal (left) struggled with the likes of Jack Grealish (right) on Tuesday
Tomas Kalas – The former Chelsea man kept close wraps on Kane for the most part, but his distribution was poor. 6
Jan Boril – May not have known too much about Saka ahead of Tuesday night but certainly does now. Was wasteful in possession. Booked. 5
Tomas Holes – Great effort in the first half saved by Pickford. Looks a tidy footballer and more than competed in a congested midfield. 6.5
Tomas Soucek – His battle with Hammers team-mate Declan Rice was a feature of the first half – missed a glorious chance to level. 6.5
Tomas Soucek (left) came close to scoring but was busy with a battle with Declan Rice (right)
Lukas Masopust – Was economical on the ball without really threatening England’s defence. Disciplined going back towards his goal. 6
Vladimir Darida – His delivery into the box, particularly from wide areas, created panic in England’s box on more than one occasion. 7
Jakub Jankto – The forward had to keep his wits about him as Grealish, Sterling and Shaw created havoc down the left. 6
Patrik Schick – Dropped deep to cause England problems, but his lack of pace appears an obvious limitation. 6
Three-goal hero Patrick Schick was very quiet at Wembley against the Three Lions on Tuesday
Subs: Sevcik 6 (Janko 46); Kral 6 (Darida 65); Hlozek 6 (Masopust 65); Pekhart (Schick 76); Vydra (Holes 84)
Subs not used: Mandous, Koubek, Kaderabek, Brabec, Barak, Krmencik, Mateju.
Manager – Jarolav Silhavy: Will be happy with the way his team responded after going behind. His team were particularly dangerous from set pieces. 6.5
ENGLAND (4-2-3-1)
Jordan Pickford – Produced an excellent stop to deny Soucek. Looks so assured as England’s No 1 right now. 7
Jordan Pickford was called into action at a crucial time and pulled off a good first-half save
Kyle Walker – England’s right side looks far stronger with him in it. Linked up well with Saka throughout. 7
John Stones – Another display full of confidence and poise. The Manchester City man is having a very good tournament. 7.5
Harry Maguire – His return to fitness is a huge boost to Southgate. The Manchester United skipper’s distribution was excellent. 7.5
Luke Shaw – Got forward more freely than he did against the Scots. Has staked his claim to keep his place for the knockout stages. 7
Harry Maguire’s return is a major boost to Gareth Southgate’s side and their Euro 2020 hopes
Kalvin Phillips – A disciplined performance from the Leeds midfielder. His mobility and athleticism a key feature in England’s engine room. 7
Declan Rice – Relished his battle with club team-mate Soucek. Expertly protected his back-four before being substituted at half-time. 6.5
Raheem Sterling – Has gone from not scoring a goal in major tournaments to being England’s golden boot contender. 8
Jack Grealish – His name drew the loudest cheer before kick-off and he responded by creating the opener. Must start the last-16 game. 8
Raheem Sterling is the only player who has scored a goal for England at this tournament
Bukayo Saka – Absolutely electric. A shock starter for England but it will be hard for Southgate to drop him after this. MOM. 8
Harry Kane: Looked more like his old self and carved out a good chance for himself in the first half. Not full flight, but positive signs. 6.5
Subs: Henderson 6 (Rice 46); Rashford 6.5 (Sterling 67); Bellingham 7 (Grealish 68); Mings (Stones 79); Sancho (Saka 84)
Gareth Southgate’s side still have problems creating chances but it’s job done for the group
Subs not used: Ramsdale, Johnstone, Mings, Trippier, Coady, Sancho, Calvert-Lewin, White, James.
Manager – Gareth Southgate: Seven points from nine isn’t to be sniffed at. Creating chances remains a problem – but job done. 7
Referee: Artur Dias (POR) – Kept the game moving – but in fairness it never threatened to boil over. 6