England underwhelms against Latvia in World Cup qualifier win
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LONDON (AP) — Reece James scored a brilliant free kick and Eberechi Eze grabbed his maiden international goal as England beat Latvia 3-0 in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley Stadium on Monday.
James, making his first start in 2 1/2 years, curled a 25-meter free kick into the top corner after 37 minutes. The goal was his first in 18 England appearances and broke down a stuffy Latvia side.
Midway through the second half, with the home crowd starting to get restless, young midfielder Morgan Rogers combined well with Declan Rice to pave the way for a Harry Kane tap-in.
Then Eze cut in from the right and his shot hit the back of the net after taking a slight deflection.
England is the hot favorite to win Europe Group K and qualify for the 2026 World Cup. New coach Thomas Tuchel, in just his second game in charge, was content with the result if not the performance against a side 136 places behind it in the FIFA rankings.
The German praised the returning James, a player he knows from his time managing Chelsea, and said he was happy with the way things have gone in his first two matches.
“I know Reecey and the quality the boy has is amazing," Tuchel told broadcaster ITV. “He has every right to be proud and happy with his performance. He is in excellent shape. He looks sharp, in shape and the quality there can be no doubt.
“It was not an easy match. We saw a lot of good things, created good chances. We needed a free kick to unlock it. I’m happy with the attitude, energy and desire. We will get there.”
Albania record first win
In the same group, Albania bounced back from losing to England 2-0 on Friday by beating Andorra 3-0 at home. Rey Manaj scored twice in the first half and Myrto Uzuni added a third in second-half stoppage time.
In Group G, Poland won for the second time in three days thanks to two goals from Karol Świderski against Malta. Świderski scored in each half.
Earlier, Finland gave up a two-goal lead in Lithuania and drew 2-2, missing the chance to maintain a 100% record.
Kaan Kairinen put the Finns ahead after four minutes and Joel Pohjanpalo doubled their lead from the penalty spot 13 minutes later. But Armandas Kučys pulled a goal back for Lithuania just before halftime and Gvidas Gineitis equalized with a 30-meter strike in the 69th.
Poland tops Group G with six points, two ahead of Finland, one of the teams that has never before qualified for the World Cup.
Bosnia wins again
In Group H, Bosnia and Herzegovina beat Cyprus 2-1 at home to stay perfect.
Ermedin Demirović put the Bosnians 1-0 up midway through the first half and Ioannis Pittas headed home an equalizer for Cyprus on the stroke of halftime. However, Haris Hajradinović fired into the top corner early in the second half to add to their opening win over Romania last week.
Romania got its first points after winning at San Marino 5-1. The fifth team in Group H, Austria, has still to kick off its campaign.
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