Foden features as England dispatch Latvia | OneFootball

Phil Foden was a second half substitute as Thomas Tuchel’s England made it two wins out of two in their World Cup Group K qualifying campaign with a 3-0 win over Latvia at Wembley.

Pitted against a Latvian side ranked 140 in the world, England had to be patient however and were made to wait until the 38th minute before breaking the deadlock.

Reece James – making his first international appearance since September 2022 – finally ended the visitors’ stubborn resistance by despatching a superbly struck free-kick.

City star Foden entered the fray in place of Jude Bellingham on 67 minutes – and just a minute later Harry Kane then doubled the Three Lions’ advantage, the skipper firing home from close range after a sweeping England move.

It took Kane’s international tally to  a remarkable71 goals from 105 appearances

Foden then made an instant impact, setting up fellow substitute Eberechi Eze who further extended England’s advantage by claiming his first international goal on 76 minutes via a deflected strike to confirm the three points.

Meanwhile City duo James McAtee and Rico Lewis both came on as second half substitutes as England’s Under-21s overcame Portugal 4-2 in an entertaining friendly played at the Hawthorns.

The Young Lions made a perfect start in the Midlands, racing into a sixth minute lead when Hayden Hackney drove home a fine shot from the edge of the box.

It got even better for Lee Carsley’s youngsters when Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri doubled the Young Lions’ lead inside 10 minutes with a quite exceptional finish.

A dangerous Portugal though reduced the arears when Wolves’ Fabio Silva latched onto Pinero’s inviting pass on 23 minutes.

Gustavo Sa then hit the post for the Iberian side in what was an incident packed first 45 minutes.

The Young Lions reasserted control on 75 minutes when Omari Hutchinson headed home from former City youngster CJ Egan-Riley’s teasing ball in.

However, Portugal reduced arrears once more when sub Carlos Forbes – former City Academy graduate – struck from close range to potentially set up a nervy finish.

But the Young Lions had the final word as sub Jaden Philogene fired home in injury time to seal victory.