QATAR 2022 WORLD CUP: Marcus Rashford brace and Foden’s goal against Wales sees England progress to last 16
By Samson Adeyemo
The Three Lions sealed first place in Group B and many thanks to key contributions from Rashford and Foden after they were restored to the team by Gareth Southgate.
Foden showed why there has been such a clamour for him to start as he won the free-kick that Rashford converted early in the second half at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Doha to give England a lead.
Foden doubled England’s lead just seconds later to effectively ended the one-sided ‘Battle of Britain’ and Rashford struck again to ensure Wales’ first World Cup since 1958 ended in disappointment.
With Foden and Rashford providing the cutting edge so lacking in their previous match — a dour goalless draw against the United States — England won for just the second time in their last nine games.
Gareth Southgate in the first half said “we controlled the game but we didn’t create enough clear chances. We wanted a bit more thrust in the final third, to play forward a bit quicker. The second half, once we got the two goals, we knew that their spirit had probably gone. I thought we kept our discipline right until the end.
It’s great for [Marcus Rashford]. He’s trained really well, I have to say, and he could have had a hat-trick. His free-kick was an incredible strike; that’s what he’s capable of. In moments I thought both [Rashford and Foden] were a bit quiet in the first half. We decided to switch them at half-time and they responded really well, and for them to both get their goals was great.
I’ve played in front of England crowds like that. It’s an amazing feeling when you see them in such numbers, especially when you think how far they’ve had to travel. I thought we dealt with the pressure really well – we were calm and we showed our quality”.
