Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Football London
Football London
Sport
Sam Hill

What England players did after qualifying for World Cup round of 16 stage amid win vs Wales

England are set to face Senegal in the World Cup round of 16 stage after qualifying as winners from Group B. The Three Lions went unbeaten in the group stage after beating Iran and Wales, along with drawing to the USA.

Gareth Southgate was able to rotate his starting lineup for the clash against fellow home nation, Wales, with Marcus Rashford, Phil Foden, Jordan Henderson and Kyle Walker coming into the team. After a frustrating first half, England scored twice in three minutes to take the game away from the Dragons.

Rashford scored a brilliant free-kick before Foden followed up with a smart finish at the back post, latching onto Harry Kane's cross. Rashford secured all three points with a fine finish inside the penalty box to see England end the group stage as winners of Group B, joined by the USA in the round of 16.

READ MORE: Mason Mount set for definitive England test as Chelsea star faces big World Cup questions

After securing qualification for the latter stages of the World Cup, a few players in the England squad headed into the stands to greet their family members who have made the trip to Qatar to support them. Captain Harry Kane, Jordan Pickford, Jude Bellingham, James Maddison, Jack Grealish and Luke Shaw were all seen relaxing with family after the brilliant 3-0 win against the Dragons.

It was a clear sign of the change in atmosphere that's been introduced into the England camp since Southgate's appointment as manager and Rio Ferdinand praised the Three Lions boss for implementing a 'relaxed' culture amongst the squad. Speaking on BBC's coverage of the match, Ferdinand said: "It's such a relaxed environment that he's [Southgate] created there.

"It goes a long way and it shows the togetherness of this squad. I remember being in squads when it was quite fractured and it was us against the media. He's [Southgate] brought this group really close together, they're a unit and that's something that they'll have to lean on at different stages throughout this tournament."

READ NEXT:

England vs Wales LIVE: Updates from the final World Cup Group B game for Gareth Southgate and Robert Page's sides

What Gareth Bale did to Tottenham's Harry Kane ahead of vital England World Cup clash vs Wales

Win £150 of Nike vouchers by predicting World Cup Golden Boot winner

National Grid confirm power blackout decision with major World Cup effect on England vs Wales

What happens if teams finish on equal points in World Cup group stage

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.