England survived a bumpy second-half to maintain their 100 per cent start to World Cup qualifying with a 2-1 win over Poland at Wembley.
Harry Maguire thumped home an emphatic winner five minutes from time to spare the blushes of his centre-half partner John Stones, whose mistake had gifted Poland a 58th-minute equaliser through Jakub Moder.
England completely dominated the first half and led when Harry Kane scored from the penalty spot after Raheem Sterling was fouled.
Dan Kilpatrick was at Wembley to run the rule over England’s players...
Nick Pope 5
Beaten for the first time in an England shirt by Moder’s superb finish and unconvincing with the ball at his feet all match.
Kyle Walker 7
Used the ball well, frequently switching play with excellent raking passes but occasionally jittery defensively.
John Stones 5
Failed his first defensive test since his return to the squad with a sloppy and overconfident mistake ahead of Moder’s fine equaliser. Went some way towards making amends with a superb assist for Maguire’s winner.
Harry Maguire 8
Bailed out England with a thumping finish to paper over the cracks of a poor second half display. Solid defensively.
Ben Chilwell 7
A steady and committed performance but link-up with Sterling still needs fine-tuning.
Kalvin Phillips 6
Covered plenty of ground and pressed Poland well but created little. As England struggled to make chances, you wondered if he was too safe a pick.
Declan Rice 7
Ran the first half from a deep midfield position, using the ball excellently, but was less influential as Poland came back into the game after the interval.
Mason Mount 7
Another promising and lively display, even if his final pass was occasionally lacking. Pressed superbly.
Raheem Sterling 7
Briefly terrified Poland with his directness in the first half and made the breakthrough by winning the penalty. But often hesitant with the ball at his feet and wasted more than one good opening.
Further enhanced his claims with an assured display, full of darting runs and clever touches. Southgate may question if he offers enough of a goal-threat, however.
Harry Kane 7
Made no mistake from the spot and had England’s other best chance, extending Wojciech Szczesny with a low effort.
Substitutes
Reece James (Foden 86’) N/A
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Kane 89’) N/A
Jesse Lingard (Sterling 90’) N/A
