England 2-0 Albania Player Ratings: Thomas Tuchel’s era off to a winning start thanks to a history-making Myles Lewis-Skelly goal!

Thomas Tuchel got off to a winning start as the new England manager after beating Albania 2-0 at Wembley Stadium. Miles Lewis-Skelly became the youngest goal scorer on debut for England as he slid home a left-footed finish in the 20th minute. Albania did well to restrict the hosts and started putting some pressure on them. Harry Kane scored late in the second half to put the result beyond the doubt as England picked their first victory in the World Cup qualifying tournament.

The entire football world was waiting to see how England would line up for the first time under the iconic German manager. He didn’t stray away from his basics but named a back four on paper that could so easily function as a back three. Miles Lewis-Skelly and Dan Burn made their international bows in the defence. Marcus Rashford returned to the starting lineup after making the squad under Tuchel. The rest of the positions were occupied by usual suspects but the lineup missed crucial stars like Bukayo Saka, Trent Alexander-Arnold and John Stones who were injured.

Sylvinho on the other hand wanted to get off to a good start in the qualification round. They faced the toughest fixture in the first game itself and hope to give a good account of themselves. Myrto Uzuni was carrying the goalscoring burden and needed a helping hand from Inter Milan’s star midfielder Kristjan Asllani.

The Three Lions took the lion’s share of the possession early on as they took some time to settle into their new shape. The defence resembled a back three when they were in possession. One of Kyle Walker or Skelly tucked alongside Burn and Konsa to form a back three on the halfway line. Declan Rice and Curtis Jones interchanged to pick up the ball from the deep and create openings. Jude Bellingham picked up different positions between the lines to find spaces. The wingers Phil Foden and Rashford stayed wide and exchanged well with their fullbacks to create openings. Harry Kane was doing his usual thing to get the shots away.

Myles Lewis-Skelly made history by scoring the first goal of the Thomas Tuchel era in the 20th minute as England carved Albania’s deep block open. Bellingham twisted and turned in the middle of the park before producing a sensational through ball. Skelly stayed high and wide, timed his run to perfection and shrugged off Jasir Asani to get on the end of it and rolled the ball past Thomas Strakosha with his left foot from the left edge of the six-yard box. He became the youngest-ever English international to score on his senior debut.

The goal did force Albania to break out of their defensive shell as they had to chase the game. They had a couple of productive counters through Asani and Arlind Ajeti to win some corners. It did however allow England to create freely in an open game. Bellingham come close to scoring if not for some great desperate defending. Kane too had a certain goal blocked by Albanian skipper Berat Djimsiti. Burn was denied by yet another cracking save from Strakosha from a corner. Albania then started to enjoy the feel of the ball and pushed England deeper into their half.

England carried a single-goal advantage into the break but the difference between the sides was more than that. It, however, gave a good chance for the visitors to throw the kitchen sink if the need arose in the second half.

Albania worked hard to keep England at bay in the second half. They tried to create some chances too by holding the ball but there wasn’t enough creativity on the pitch. England came the closest to the second goal as Kane just nodded wide from a Rashford cross. Jones started pushing higher and had two decent crosses well dealt by the defence.

Armando Broja came on for Albania and added enough threat for the visitors. He nearly went all the way while cutting in from the left flank before running into a tight angle. Broja then set up Kristjan Asllani but Konsa read the danger well to clear it. Tuchel responded with a triple substitution but the majority of the changes were in attack as England were put under pressure defensively.

Harry Kane then put the result beyond the doubt when he collected a cross from Declan Rice and tucked the ball into the bottom corner in the 78th minute. Arlind Ajeti committed himself too soon as he gave Kane all the time in the world to pick his spot and finish.

It allowed England to take the sting out of the game and see it out without any hiccups. The substitutes got the job done for Thomas Tuchel as he picked up a first win on the road to the 2026 World Cup in the USA.

England made lightwork of Albania as they made a winning start to the Thomas Tuchel era. The German manager almost had a near-perfect night as everything from lineups to results went his way. He would certainly know that tougher challenges than this lie on the road ahead. They play Latvia next in the same venue on Monday night.

Albania was second-best and thoroughly beaten. It would come as no surprise to them given the might of their opposition. They return home and host Andorra at Air Albania stadium on Monday. Given Andorra’s ranking, the Eagles would be hoping to pick up a first victory of the tournament then.

England Player Ratings

GK – Jordan Pickford – 6.5/10

Was barely involved in the opening 30 minutes. Had a mixup with Dan Burn but got out of it by conceding a corner with a punch.

RB – Kyle Walker – 6.5/10

Shared the flank with his ex-teammate Foden and made good runs at times to create some attacks. Showed his trademark recovery pace multiple times. Reacted superbly to cut a Broja cross into the middle.

CB – Ezri Konsa – 7/10

Very fluid on the ball and broke lines multiple times with ease. Stood firm in duels when Albania tried to push higher. A great tackle to deny Asllani when he was running through on goal.

CB – Dan Burn – 7/10

Completely at ease on his debut as a 32-year-old. He stayed in the dead centre of a back three when England built out from the back. Had a lot of volume passing to keep the flow going. Nearly scored with a lovely header. Broja asked some real questions of him from the left-hand side.

LB – Myles Lewis-Skelly – 8/10

Mixed caution and aggression well to switch between attack and defence. The run and finish with his left foot etches his name into history books on his debut. Was very alert defensively to cut out some rapid breaks. He was substituted to a standing ovation from the Wembley crowd.

DM – Curtis Jones- 7/10

Showed a lovely piece of skill to break into the box once but his cutback was blocked. Good anticipation defensively to cut out some passes. Had the freedom to attack the box more in the second half.

DM – Declan Rice – 7.5/10

Received the ball from deep and played some good passes over the top. Did his defensive duties to perfection as England kept the possession forever. Picked up an assist with a cross from the right half-space.

RW – Phil Foden – 6/10

His trademark cut-in and shoot lanes were blocked well by Albania. He still found ways to drive at the defence but there was a sense of low confidence from the forward as he struggled to make a real impact.

CAM – Jude Bellingham – 7.5/10

Picked up some lovely positions in the low block of Albania before finding a killer pass to set up Skelly. Nearly added a couple of goals if not for some great saves and blocks.

LW – Marcus Rashford – 6.5/10

Back into the lineup and did his best to have a mark. Stretched the defence wide and then took on the full-back. His work rate was well appreciated by the manager.

ST – Harry Kane – 7.5/10

Kane’s play with his back to the goal was at the fore again as England tried to break the opposition. Once they scored the opener, he started to get more chances. A certain goal was excellently blocked by Djimsiti. Did seal the result with a fine finish late in the game.

Sub – Jarrod Bowen – 6/10

Sub – Anthony Gordon – 6/10

Sub – Morgan Rogers – 6/10

Sub – Jordan Henderson – 6/10

Sub – Reece James – N/A

Manager – Thomas Tuchel – 8/10

His first lineup took some time to create some high-quality chances. Once they got familiar with each other, the game was flowing with ease. The team would only get better with stars returning from injuries. Exciting sign to see England realise their potential and attack more.

Also Read: Italy 1-2 Germany Player Ratings: Goretzka and Kleindenst give Germany the win in an even contest

Albania Player Ratings

GK – Thomas Strakosha – 6.5/10

He was beaten by Skelly for the first goal who rolled one through his legs. Made a great save to deny Bellingham first and Burn next from the corner. Picked up an injury and had to be substituted.

RB – Ivan Balliu – 6/10

Dragged wide by Rashford, he held the ground at times but was overwhelmed ultimately when England doubled up on him. Stood his ground well despite all that to win some tackles.

CB – Alind Ajeti – 5.5/10

The veteran defender missed a long ball early on in the game but wasn’t punished as Bellingham misjudged the ball too. He won the ball well later on as he drove them out of defence. Committed too early for the Harry Kane goal and was well punished.

CB -Berat Djimsiti – 6.5/10

Blocked some certain goal-bound efforts heroically to keep his side in the contest. Picked up a yellow card midway through the first half and had to watch his step.

LB – Naser Aliji – 5.5/10

Dealt well with the threat of Foden out wide. Did hurry the winger into making some backward passes and tried to push out of the backline with the ball.

CM – Kristjan Asllani – 6/10

The most forward-thinking of the midfield three. Had the freedom to dart into the opposition half and create some openings. Was set up well by Broja but failed to get the shot away.

CM – Ylber Ramadani – 6/10

After a slow start to the game, he grew into the game with some neat interceptions to break England’s flow in the second half of the game. Did the dirty work for his side when the opposition tried to sneak past the midfield.

CM – Qazim Laci – 5.5/10

Had a wild long-range effort in the first half. He could’ve used a bit more composure to make more of the possession he had.

RW – Jasir Asani – 5.5/10

Was marking Skelly for the first goal and was shrugged aside easily as the defender scored the opener. Going forward, he was creating chances but England had replies to it.

ST – Myrto Uzuni- 5/10

The striker was well handled by the centre-back duo of England. Konsa in particular ate up anything that came towards him as he failed to trap the ball and create space for others.

LW – Nedim Bajrami – 6/10

He dropped deep and showed decent bits of skill to walk away from high-pressure situations. He couldn’t show the same temperament in chance creation though.

Sub – Armando Broja- 6.5/10

Making a comeback from his recurring injuries, he entered the fray with 30 minutes remaining to make an impact. He became the best attacker on the pitch for them as he created multiple openings.

Sub – Arber Hoxha – 6/10

Sub – Adrion Pajaziti- 6/10

Sub – Elhan Kastrati- 6/10

Manager – Sylvinho – 6/10

Set his side in a decent low block. They really challenged England to break them down and succeeded to an extent till the end of the first quarter. Once they were breached, his side had to open up and attack more. However, the strong defensive shape was still intact. Will need some better firepower going forward.

Sportsdunia’s Player of the Match Goes to Myles Lewis-Skelly

Also Read: Denmark 1-0 Portugal Player Ratings: Rasmus Hojlund’s late goal wins the clash for a dominant Denmark side.

FAQs