Tuchel praises Madueke as Arsenal duo lead England to victory again | OneFootball

Noni Madueke scored his first England goal and Declan Rice provided two assists as the Arsenal internationals drove their team to another victory.

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Arsenal’s Noni Madueke and Declan Rice were the driving force behind England’s win over Andorra last week, with Madueke’s cross turned in by an Andorra player for the opening goal and Rice scoring the second in the 2-0 victory.

The same two players were at it again as England won 5-0 away to Serbia on Tuesday night.

Rice assisted Harry Kane’s opening goal in the 33rd minute, curling a corner right onto the striker’s head. Madueke then doubled England’s lead with a fantastic driving run and a confident finish.

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Rice added another assist in the second half, curling another set-piece into the danger area. This time it was a free-kick, with Marc Guehi supplying the finishing touch.

The match finished 5-0, and England boss Thomas Tuchel was certainly impressed with Madueke afterwards.

“I’m very happy that he scored today and was involved in goals because this is something he needs to add to his game,” Tuchel said. “Efficiency and being involved in goals with assists and finishes, and goals.”

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“That’s why I’m very happy today because he played with hunger and with a directness and on top of that he needs to stay focused,” Tuchel added.

“I’m most happy about his attitude today. The reaction off the ball, the work he put in to help Reece (James) because we played a back four against a back five, so to help against the wing-backs and to push forward.

“The work rate is what I like the most in his performance today. He’s fast, he’s direct and he likes to dribble. That’s what we want from him.”

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Madueke and Rice were withdrawn in the 76th and 81st minutes respectively, which will hopefully keep them fresh enough to be ready for another start against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

Eberechi Eze wasn’t involved on this occasion, and Myles Lewis-Skelly was rested from the squad after playing 90 minutes in the Andorra match.