5 Things we learned about England

1 City forward does his talking on the pitch

RAHEEM STERLING has been the talk of the town this week. First, it was for his new tattoo, then it was for his tardiness. Southgate showed he has the City forward’s back by starting him. Harry Kane will be a few England fans’ favourite player at the World Cup but Sterling has that X-factor. His second-half dive in the area was bad but he constantly looked to be the creative spark. More of that in Russia please, Raheem!

2 England boss shows savvy to pick Cahill

WHEN speaking to the media at Chelsea’s training ground the day before Gareth Southgate named his squad, Gary Cahill had no idea whether he would receive a World Cup call-up. He may not be the best ball-playing centre back but the 32-year-old certainly knows how to defend and can pop up with a decent goal or two. His header was pinpoint. It was right of Southgate to add someone with such experience and know-how to his England squad.

3 Super Eagles fail to live up to snazzy shirt

NIGERIA’S green and white kit is certainly the boldest that will be on show in Russia. Their retro shirt sold out immediately after going on sale on Friday but their team produced a below-average performance in the first half. Despite beating Argentina 4-2 in a friendly in November, Lionel Messi and Co look to have little to worry about from their Group D rivals. Nigeria finally woke up in the second half to get in the game and Arsenal’s Alex Iwobi was the catalyst.

4 Pickford looks dead cert to be No 1 in Russia

GARETH SOUTHGATE stood by his three centre back tactic that worked well against Holland and Italy in March’s friendlies. After a quiet first half, Cahill, Kyle Walker and John Stones were tested after the break. But there were not many surprises from Southgate in his line-up. Jordan Pickford started in goal, indicating that the Everton goalkeeper will get the nod in Russia ahead of Jack Butland and Nick Pope.

5 VAR was not the star in final warm-up

THE Video Assistant Referee will not be available at Elland Road for England’s friendly against Costa Rica on Thursday, so this was England’s last chance to familiarise themselves with the system before Russia. Unfortunately, it was barely used, other than to double check the goals. The most exciting it got was when Italian referee Marco Guida had to pause play to have his radio pack fixed by the fourth official.