England tiptoed past Tim Payne's New Zealand, 1-0 | OneFootball

England defeated New Zealand 1-0 at Raymond James Stadium on Saturday, June 6, in an international friendly ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

From the very first minute, the British side imposed itself and dominated possession and the tempo of the match. The Oceanian team’s attempts were based on long balls aimed at Chris Wood so he could battle with the English defenders.

The first clear chance of the match came for the ‘Three Lions’ when a long ball found Ollie Watkins one-on-one with a defender, but his angled shot was poor and went wide.

Later, Harry Kane tried from long range with plenty of power, forcing a good save from goalkeeper Max Crocombe.

The pace of the game was fairly calm, with the players carefully managing their workload, fearing a possible injury just days before the start of the World Cup, in addition to Florida’s humid heat, with temperatures above 32 degrees Celsius.

In the 26th minute, New Zealand took advantage of England’s passivity and dared to attack directly through a good move by Matthew Garbett, who drove forward, cut inside past Marc Guéhi and struck a low shot with the inside of his foot, prompting a great save from Jordan Pickford, who pushed it away to the side.

The World Cup’s viral player, Tim Payne, had a very difficult first half duel against Marcus Rashford, and in the 33rd minute a run down the flank by the Barcelona winger ended with a dangerous cross for Kane, who won the header and the goalkeeper sent it out for a corner.

In the final action of the first half, England found the goal. Djed Spence appeared down the left, sent a dangerous cross into the box that Harry Kane flicked on with his head to place the ball against the post and open the scoring.

England changed the entire team for the second half

Tuchel opted for 11 changes for the second half, completely reshuffling the lineup. Anthony Gordon, Jude Bellingham, Reece James and others came on.

In the 49th minute, giant defender Dan Burn rose highest and his header grazed Crocombe’s post, nearly making it 2-0.

In the 58th minute, there was a controversial moment. Garbett ran into Ivan Toney in the box and referee Natalie Simon awarded a penalty, but the play was ruled out for offside. VAR then reviewed the incident and confirmed the decision.

The names changed for England, but the rhythm of the match stayed the same, with the ‘Three Lions’ controlling possession at a measured pace, moving the ball around and not overexerting themselves. Rio Ngumoha, Liverpool’s 17-year-old youngster, showed flashes of his natural skill and ability to beat defenders, but without making a real impact in front of goal.

Very little happened until the end of the match, with both teams comfortable with the result and looking to arrive at the start of the World Cup in the best possible shape.

Next Wednesday, June 10, England will face Costa Rica in their final warm-up friendly ahead of their World Cup debut against Croatia on June 17 in Dallas. New Zealand, meanwhile, will open their campaign on Monday the 15th against Iran in California.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.