After a 2-1 defeat to the Pirate Ships of Greece on October 10th, 2024 at Wembley, the Three Lions of England kept their campaign in the UEFA Nations League rejuvenated as they defeated Finland by 3 goals to one on Sunday 13th October 2024.
The Finnish who are yet to get any point in the UEFA Nations League campaign so far, struggled again as they could not withstand England even on home soil.
The crucial win for England became a necessity as they strived to continuously keep the fight on. The last international competition was somewhat impressive for the Three Lions as they were knocked out of the Euro 2024 campaign after losing at the semifinals in a thrilling 5-3 Penalty shootout to the Swiss national team. This caused a lot of reactions from supporters back home and the team had to undergo some changes after Southgate announced his resignation as the Head coach of the National team.
The current UEFA Nations League is the first international task for the team after the UEFA EURO 2024 completion and so far they seek to perform more despite some technical shifting and arrangement.
The game on Sunday had England in full control right from the first half and this caused Finland to employ defensive strategies. The sweet controlled pass from Angel Gomes assisted Jack Grealish to slot in the ball past the Finnish goalie Lukas Hradecky in the 18th minute, and the scoreline ended one nil at half-time in favor of England.
Several attempts by Finland to break past the English defense were fruitless in the second half as the defense line was too solid to penetrate.
The lead was doubled in the 74th minute after a stunning freekick from Alexander Arnolds. The third came for England in the 84th minute after Ollie Watkins provided an assist that had Declan Rice tapped in the ball.
Finland got a consolidated goal in the 87th minute courtesy of Arttu Hoskonen.
Injury Concern: Although injuries were recorded during the 2-1 defeat to Greece before yesterday, the team was able to keep the supposed blows curtailed. Second half into the game, Bukayo Saka sustained an injury. The injury was visibly seen struggling with a leg issue that later led to his substitution. Fans were thrown with concern as the talented winger limped with pain out of the field of play. England’s new manager, Lee Carsley spoke about the injury during a post-match press conference. He mentioned that Saka’s condition is still being evaluated, and this has created concerns in the team. His injury could be a thing of concern also for His club side Arsenal as they continue to push for the 2024/2025 English Premier League title. After a vital match coming up against Bournemouth on Saturday 19th October 2024, the Gunners will on Tuesday 22nd October welcome Shakhtar Donetsk in the UEFA Champions League and face Liverpool on 27th of October 2024. With these crucial matches at hand, Saka’s recovery will be very much cherished.
England is in League B Group 2 including Greece, Ireland, and Finland. Greece tops the group as it stands with 12 points after winning all four matches played. England is in the second position with three wins and one defeat. Ireland is third with just one win, and the Finnish stays at the bottom after failing to win any of their matches so far.
