WATCH:
- Goal Jordan Henderson (38 mins) England 1 Senegal 0
- Goal Harry Kane (45 mins) England 2 Senegal 0
- Goal Bukayo Saka (57 mins) England 3 Senegal 0
We’ll leave it at that for the blog. Stay tuned for Ken Early’s match report and click on the links above to relive the three England goals. Thanks for joining us.
Clinical England move up through the gears when they need to as Senegal go home. It was a disappointing contest in the end given the test Senegal gave to England for 38 minutes, but ultimately Jude Bellingham was too good, Harry Kane was involved in almost everything while Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka offered enough out wide when England woke up to outclass Senegal.
Next Saturday’s quarter-final with France could be one of the matches of the tournament. If England pick the same team, then Kyle Walker is marking Kylian Mbappé. What do we make of that?
Full-time England 3 Senegal 0
90+3 mins: Nidaye has a chance from a free-kick but launches it straight into the wall. Senegal do earn a corner but Sarr’s effort is low and cleared by Kane at the front post.
90+1 mins: England are still searching for a fourth. Shaw dinks a chipped cross over the box with Rashford at the back post. He tries to stretch to get a shot on target but can only find the side-netting.
90 mins: Sarr has been one of Senegal’s busier players today but that is not a moment to remember. A loose ball trickles out to him 25 yards out but he can only blast the ball into row Z.
87 mins: Gueye works very hard to stay on his feet under pressure from a challenge just long enough to let fly from the edge of the box. It’s off target but it did take a deflection. The resulting corner leads to an easy take for Pickford in the box.
In the spirit of continuing to look at England’s impressive attack, Bukayo Saka struggled to get on the end of a series of crosses in the first half but since then he’s been good on the press and his ability to win the ball back to set up counters. Not to mention his goal.
84 mins: CHANCE! Jakobs has acres of space to cross, Rashford is far too nonchalant in going to close him down. Sarr gets on the end of it but can only head it ouver. Ballo-Toure comes on to replace Jakobs as that cross was his last involvement.
Another England change. Jordan Henderson comes off to be replaced by Kalvin Phillips.
80 mins: Henderson picks out Rashford down the right who in turn tries to play in Kane. It’s almost a perfect ball, the England captain stretching to reach it and tap home but it just evades his boot.
For all of his success going forward - Bellingham got one assist and set up England’s second - the Dortmund man’s work in defence also stands out now his day is done.
76 mins: Yellow for Koulibaly. He’s clearly frustrated, deciding to barge into the back of Kane with the ball gone. If we’re going out, you’re coming with us, Harry. Perhaps not as Kane ultimately limps to his feet. During the break in play, England decide to wrap Bellingham in cotton wool and bring Mount on for him. Stones is also off as Dier comes on at centre-back.
74 mins: A rare shot on goal from Senegal. Sarr tries to catch Pickford off guard with a free-kick from range. It’s a decent strike, but Pickford is happy enough to watch it hit the side-netting.
72 mins: Dia is off, Diedhiou is on for Senegal. They have brought on their leading scorer in qualifying for this tournament up front.
71 mins: Plenty of possession for Senegal now but little incision. England seem happy to back off until they enter the final third where Grealish makes a good challenge. Gueye then fouls Rice in his haste to win it back.
64 mins: Changes for England and it’s the two wide men. Saka and Foden are replaced by Grealish and Rashford.
Kane has 19 touches in front of the defensive line, more than anyone else. A sign of his willingness to drop in behind play to get involved in the build-up. That ability to drop deep has helped open up acres of space for Foden, Bellingham and Saka out wide.
Here is that delicate Saka finish.
57 mins: If it wasn’t over before, it is now. Foden skips onto the ball down the flank after Kane is tackled out wide. His cross across the box is pin-point accurate, picking out Saka who deftly chips over Mendy with a beautiful finish. England look so good when they decide to turn it on.
GOAL BUKAYO SAKA
56 mins: Nervy moment for Mendy in the Senegal goal. Kane lets fly from distance, it dips just in front of the goal and nearly squirts under Mendy’s body. He’s lucky no one in an England shirt was following up the shot otherwise they would have had a tap-in.
54 mins: Rice mops up possession in midfield before firing it forward quickly to Kane. He feeds Saka who lets the ball run too far across his body for the shot but still takes it on. Over the bar it sails.
53 mins: Not for the first time today, Maguire is caught in possession as Diaye chases the ball in behind. Fortunately for Maguire, his mate Stones is there to clean up his mess.
50 mins: England continue to dominate possession early on in the second half. Senegal sit back as they did in the first, they can’t get away with that for long given the scoreline.
Given the momentum Senegal had, this save from Pickford could well have kept England in the tournament. What a left hand this was.
Before England’s late flurry of goals, Senegal had two big chances. One was blocked by John Stones. The ball appeared to hit his arm but VAR said no penalty. What do you reckon?
Harry Kane inches closer to Rooney’s record...
Before then, deft interplay down the left sent Bellingham cutting into the box. His ball back across may have been in hope rather than anything else, but Henderson was rewarded for continuing his run. Bellingham, for all of England’s woes for 38 minutes, has been outstanding, setting up both goals.
Here is that Kane goal which could well be crucial. Bellingham is majestic in this passage of play, winning the ball deep in his own half, dribbling past one man before passing through three more. Foden’s first touch to play in Kane is fantastic and, well, the skipper won’t miss a chance like that when one-on-one.
England were abject for 38 minutes, tedious, slow, lethargic and lacking ideas. Apart from two occasions when Bellingham got dangerous balls into the box, nothing was created and Mendy went untroubled in the Senegal net.
By contrast, Maguire and Stones’ trouble in playing the ball out from the back gifted chances, Pickford coming to the rescue when Dia fired on target.
Then came a critical counter, one that ended with Henderson running late into the box to fire home. From there it was like a switch flicked and it was all England. A second goal came just before the whistle with Senegal desperate for the break. For all their hard work for the bones of 40 minutes, Senegal look to be out of the tournament barring a miracle.
Half-time: England 2 Senegal 0
45 mins: That could be game, set and match already. It’s a brilliant counter, once again. Senegal are pushing for an equaliser high up the pitch, but Ciss is caught in possession just outside the England box. Senegal’s midfield is nowhere to be seen, allowing Bellingham to feed Foden who in turn lays it off to Kane. In the blink of an eye, the ball is in the Senegal box and Harry Kane buries it.
GOAL HARRY KANE
Two minutes of added time. Seems light given the way this tournament has gone...
43 mins: Shaw should have scored. Now Senegal are caught playing it out from the back, allowing Shaw to race forward and Bellingham to pick him out. He’s in on goal, albeit with a tight angle, but doesn’t shoot until Mendy is right on top of him, making the save too easy.
Here is that England goal that looks to have launched them into gear.
41 mins: Chance! More like it from England. Saka makes hay as England finally get some joy down the right. His ball in finds Kane but he can only fire over the bar with an off-balanced effort.
38 mins: As soon as I say England are offering nothing going forward, they score against the run of play on the counter. Maguire, Shaw and Foden all link up down the left to send Bellingham away. He races into the box before cutting back to Henderson who has run from midfield, hitting it first time with his left to beat Mendy. Cracking goal, but could not be more against the run of play.
GOAL JORDAN HENDERSON
38 mins: Ndiaye tries to play in Diatta after his run from deep but the pass is overhit. Even there, though, with a mishit pass, Senegal have offered more in the final third than anything we’ve seen so far from England.
36 mins: Walker is lucky not to have his name taken here. Sarr beats him down the left, holding him off with his strength before Walker decides to haul him down instead of letting him sprint into space. Amazingly, despite shutting down a clear chance, Walker does not see yellow.
35 mins: England again give the ball away in their own half with a poor pass. They have been beyond atrocious when it comes to gifting the ball away deep. This time Jakobs looks to punish them after beating Walker to work the way for the cross, only for Stones to head clear.
33 mins: Brilliant defending from Jakobs to deny Saka a chance after a good ball over the top from Kane. Better and more direct from England, I wonder if that Dia chance will just wake them up here.
31 mins: SAVE! England again give the ball away at the back, Saka this time the culprit. Dia gets the shot away after good work from Diatta, and it takes a superb, one-handed save from Pickford to spare England’s blushes. Senegal are growing in confidence by the minute.
30 mins: Ndiaye’s battle with both Maguire and Stones has been fascinating so far. He’s been niggly, more than happy to go shoulder-to-shoulder with two bigger men and on this occasion he wins a free off Stones.
28 mins: Senegal seem more than happy to concede possession to England as they work down the left. There really is no creative edge, though. Stones fires it long down the flank to Walker but it’s over his head and out of play. this organised Senegal outfit is frustrating England to no end.
26 mins: Saka has swapped wings to pop up on the left as that continues to be England’s best attacking channel. Despite some good movement of the ball down that flank, still no chance is fashioned as a Senegalese boot gets on the ball before Koulibaly clears.
23 mins: CHANCE! Senegal should have scored. They win the ball back high up the pitch after a poor pass from Maguire. Diaye fires goalwards only for Stones to block, but then Sarr on the follow up blazes over from only yards out. What a miss. There was a VAR check for a possible handball from Stones but it is over quickly as play continues.
22 mins: Pickford has to come a long way out of his box after Diallo caused issues in behind. A good old fashioned header from the ‘keeper does the trick with the clearance.
20 mins: England are furious as Walker’s deflected pass goes behind for a goal-kick. After much protestation, looks like the assistant has changed his mind and Foden will be able to whip the set-piece in. Stones gets to it first but completely misses with the attempted header, the ball instead smashing into his shoulder and miles over the bar.
17 mins: Ndiaye nearly gets on the outside of Maguire on the counter but the United centre-back does just enough to hold him off. Ndiaye had him for pace, but Maguire’s strength does enough to get him out of trouble.
14 mins: Kane is upended in a crunching tackle. Advantage is played as Henderson looks to play Saka in but N Mendy does well to shepherd the ball out. England are not happy they didn’t go back for the foul on Kane.
12 mins: Saka picks off the full-back with a run over the top but his ball into the area is long. Shaw gets it back up towards Bellingham but Koulibaly wins the ball back with a crunching tackle. England keep the pressure up with a Kane cross but Saka once again can’t get on the end of it.
Despite England’s fast start, it’s the Senegal faithful making all the noise early doors
10 mins: Bellingham fires one in across the area but no one is home to steer it home. Saka was closest but he didn’t angle his run towards goal, much to the frustration of Bellingham who wanted to see him target the back post.
9 mins: Nervy from Diallo, very nervy. Saka catches him in possession inside his own box but he uses his body to shepherd the ball back to Mendy in the net. He needed to be careful there as he could easily have hauled Saka to deck such was the contact he made with him.
8 mins: England work an intricate set-play with plenty of moving parts of a short free-kick. The ball is eventually played over the top to Rice at the far post. His volley back into the area presents a chance for Maguire to attack it but Senegal do enough to clear.
4 mins: CHANCE! Dia gets on the end of a through ball that bisects Maguire and Stones beautifully. He has a chance to pull the trigger inside the box but takes an extra touch, one which lets Maguire come back and poke the ball away. What a chance that was and Dia couldn’t even get his shot away.
4 mins: Henderson tries to link up with Foden after earlier pressing Mendy into an error in his own half. The pass is long and rolls out of play.
3 mins: England respond to the early press with a lengthy period of possession. Senegal decide this time not to pressure high up the pitch, instead patiently waiting for a loose ball forward from Walker which is picked off.
1 min: Senegal kick things off. Koulibaly immediately gets on the ball as the African side goes straight to their talisman, building out from the back before forcing Pickford into a rushed clearance.
Right then. The anthems are done and we are nearly good to go in Qatar. Ivan Barton, aged just 31, from El Savador is today’s referee. Apparently he’s a chemistry teacher in the day job!
The numbers point to a fascinating clash in terms of style. Senegal rely far more on crosses into the box for their goal-threat but England have a better record in aerial duels at the tournament so far.
Hear from Phil Foden ahead of this one who has fast become a key man in this England attack.
Pre-match reading on the magnificence of Mbappé, if you missed France’s win earlier.
And here is the Senegal XI that will look to cause a historic upset, led by Koulibaly at the back.
Welcome to live coverage of England vs Senegal! The winner gets the reward of playing Kylian Mbappé and France in the quarters...
Before then, here is the team news. Bukayo Saka replacing Marcus Rashford for England is the main talking point in their line-up. Phil Foden unsurprisingly keeps his place.
