Bellingham shines as England ease to Wembley win
England 3 Ivory Coast 0
STAND-IN skipper Raheem Sterling set up one and scored another as England cruised to victory in a friendly against Ivory Coast that felt more like a training match after Serge Aurier’s sending off.
Gareth Southgate made 10 changes from Saturday’s comeback win against well-drilled Switzerland as World Cup preparations continued with a first-ever senior international meeting of these nations. Sterling crossed for Ollie Watkins’ opener and added a second shortly after Aurier’s first-half sending off, with many having left Wembley by the time Tyrone Mings headed home to make it 3-0 at the death.
Former Three Lions international Wilfried Zaha was absent from the Ivory Coast squad at Wembley, where the side ranked 51st in the world were second best from the outset.
Impressive Jude Bellingham hit the post before Watkins tapped in following excellent work by captain Sterling, who scored one of his own on the stroke of half-time after turning home a Jack Grealish cross.
The Ivorians had been reduced to 10
men minutes earlier after ex-Tottenham defender Aurier was sent off for two bookings and the second half began by giving away a penalty.
That decision was overruled after Fousseny Coulibaly’s challenge on impressive Bellingham was reviewed, with paper planes raining down on the pitch as Southgate turned to the likes of Harry Kane. Mings managed to score a third at the end of a drab second half as attention turns to Friday’s eagerlyanticipated World Cup draw in Qatar.
That event will dominate the talk after Tuesday’s friendly, while fans’ initial reaction for Harry Maguire is also sure to be brought up.
A smattering of boos greeted the substitute’s name on Saturday and there were more before kick-off against Ivory Coast as the underfire Manchester United captain made his first international appearance of the year.
There were even some jeers during Maguire’s first few touches of the ball - a baffling reaction to such a key member of Southgate’s squad.
The atmosphere was otherwise subdued as England’s superior quality shone through.