England 2-1 Belgium | Hits & Flops | UEFA Nations League
England came back from being behind to pull an upset over Belgium thanks to goals from Marcus Rashford and Mason Mount after Romelu Lukaku had handed Belgium the lead from the spot. It was all Belgium in the first half as England struggled to get a foothold in the game.
The visitors even had a goal scored by Yannick Carrasco chalked off before Eric Dier's clumsy challenge on Romelu Lukaku won them a penalty. Lukaku converted from the spot without any fuss. However, Thomas Meunier would return the favour for England by conceding a penalty.
It was Marcus Rashford who stroked it home from the spot for the Three Lions. They showed a lot more self-belief in the second half and it would be fair to say that they earned the result for all their industry post the restart. Mason Mount then scored thanks to a giant deflection from Toby Alderweireld to make it 2-1 in the 64th minute.
It was a toughly contested affair and as we have seen so often in the past, there is very little margin for error in these games.
Let's take a look at the hits and flops from the game.
#5 Hit - Marcus Rashford (England)
It has been a good week for Marcus Rashford, MBE and he topped it off with a thumping penalty to restore parity. Rashford posed a threat to the Belgian defence throughout the night with his movement. He started the night looking a bit low on confidence but grew into it as the game went on.
Rashford converted emphatically from the spot after Thomas Meunier's foul on Jordan Henderson. The Manchester United is gaining some valuable minutes and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, in particular, will be pleased with the performance that the youngster put in tonight as he looks to be regaining the sharpness that's been lacking of late.
#4 Flop - Thomas Meunier (Belgium)
Thomas Meunier did cover a lot of ground tonight but it was his clumsy challenge on Jordan Henderson which kickstarted England's resurgence. Meunier lost track of his man as England were preparing to take a corner and he oddly held on to Henderson's shirt and bundled him to the ground.
It was not an out-and-out dismal display from the Belgian defender but it was his error that cost Belgium their lead. But it was that kind of game and it was his mistake that ultimately gave a stuttering England side the confidence to come back and earn the victory against Belgium today