Kane strikes as England struggle past Andorra in qualifier

Harry Kane scored the only goal as England overcame a stubborn Andorra side to continue their unbeaten start to qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

Boss Thomas Tuchel had warned supporters they may need patience as the Three Lions attempted to break down a well-organised home defence – and that prediction proved correct.

His side were jeered off at the break as they failed to find the net in the first half against opponents ranked 173rd in the world.

After a laboured first-half display, England took the lead five minutes into the second half through captain Kane, but failed to secure the comfortable win many expected.

The Bayern Munich striker was found in the box by Curtis Jones and, when his initial effort was saved by Iker Alvarez, the ball fell to Noni Madueke who swept a low cross into the six-yard-box for Kane to tap in.

Tuchel named an attacking side for this match and played Liverpool midfielder Jones in an unfamiliar right-back role and Reece James at left-back as he looked to take advantage of his side’s dominance of the ball.

However, that plan did not pay off as a frustrated England struggled to create clear-cut openings in Barcelona against Andorra, who fought defiantly but were limited.

Jude Bellingham and Madueke were restricted to long-range shots, which Alvarez saved well, and substitute Eberechi Eze went close with a second-half header that was tipped over the bar.

The narrow success left England top of Group K with nine points, from three successive wins, and they are next in action on Tuesday when they play Senegal in a friendly at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground.Kane

Tuchel will want more after underwhelming display

Despite Tuchel saying fans should not ‘over expect’ in this encounter, many will no doubt be disappointed by England’s display and the fact they did not win more convincingly against the group’s bottom side.

Despite having 82.9% possession and 10 shots in the first half, the Three Lions struggled to test Andorra keeper Alvarez enough.

England are blessed with many excellent attacking options but this performance will have left Tuchel pondering the best way to use them when they play this type of defensive-minded opposition during the qualifying campaign.

The match won’t live long in the memory, but the most important thing is booking their place in next year’s World Cup.

Tuchel handed a start to Jordan Henderson for the first time since 17 November 2023 as he looks to learn more about his squad before they face better opposition.

England have used their week-long training camp in Barcelona to try to build togetherness in the limited time the German has had to spend with his players.

Tuchel has had only eight training sessions across his first two camps in charge.

He will head into the Senegal friendly wanting to find the right formula to produce a better performance so he and the players end this international window with a positive, rather than underwhelming, feeling.