England disappoint, Netherlands beat Finland in World Cup qualifiers

(Dan Tri) - Both won the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in the early morning of June 8, but the England team was criticized for playing like torturing the audience while the Netherlands convincingly defeated Finland.

Visiting Andorra, England struggled to win 1-0 thanks to the only goal by Harry Kane, thereby maintaining their perfect record in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Kane's only goal helped England maintain their perfect record in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers (Photo: Getty).

After the opening whistle, the “Three Lions” quickly overwhelmed their opponents. Coach Thomas Tuchel’s team dominated possession and continuously launched attacks, causing Andorra to almost only know how to defend.

However, during the first 45 minutes, England could not score any goals against their opponents. It was not until the beginning of the second half that the situation of the match could change.

In the 50th minute, Harry Kane became the hero when he scored the only goal after a combination with Noni Madueke. Receiving a through ball from Curtis Jones, Kane shot but was blocked. Madueke quickly took the ball and crossed for Kane to complete the only goal of the match.

During the remaining time, England continued to put pressure on the home team's goal but could not score and had to end the match with a minimal 1-0 victory against the team ranked 173rd in FIFA.

This result left English football fans feeling disappointed as they were expecting a big win for the "Three Lions" to show their strength before entering the 2026 World Cup finals.

However, this victory still helps England firmly consolidate the top position in Group K with 9 absolute points after 3 matches. Meanwhile, Andorra continues to have no points and is at the bottom of the table.

In complete contrast to the "Three Lions", the Netherlands easily won 2-0 on Finland's field. Coach Ronald Koeman's team started the match with an overwhelming style of play, causing the opponent to immediately reveal an opening.

In the 6th minute, from a faulty pass back from the opposing defender, Memphis Depay took advantage of the opportunity, breaking free and finishing sharply to open the score for the "Orange Hurricane".

Memphis Depay helped the Netherlands to their first win in their opening World Cup qualifier since 2012 (Photo: Getty).

With the opening goal, the Netherlands played comfortably but still proved effective. In the 23rd minute, defender Denzel Dumfries accurately cushioned the ball in the penalty area, doubling the gap after Cody Gakpo's precise pass, marking a dominating half.

In the second half, coach Koeman and his team actively retreated to protect the result but still had an overwhelming advantage with 17 shots, of which 6 were on target, compared to only 5 shots from Finland. Although they did not score any more goals, coach Ronald Koeman's team easily maintained the 2-0 victory.

With this result, the Netherlands temporarily ranked 3rd in Group G with 3 points after one match, behind Finland (4 points/3 matches) and the top team Poland (6 points/2 matches).

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/tuyen-anh-gay-that-vong-ha-lan-thang-phan-lan-o-vong-loai-world-cup-20250608071632428.htm