Our final group fixture was a match eagerly anticipated since the World Cup draw was made 242 days ago. It was a matchup that Jonathan Pearce excitedly exclaimed:

You couldn’t script it

Well, given that they could script a movie about dreams inside dreams inside dreams, I'm pretty sure they could've scripted an England v. Wales football match. But I digress...

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When I heard that England would line up with Rashford and Foden instead of Sterling and Saka, I was more optimistic about the type of performance we'd get.

With Kyle Walker coming in for Kieran Trippier, it meant that we had Stones, Walker and Foden down the right (a Man City trio) and Maguire, Shaw and Rashford down the left (a Man Utd trio).

With Bellingham and Rice holding in midfield and Kane linking up with Rashford and Foden, I was confident that our 10-men could better Wales' 11.

1st Half

Despite being 0-0 at half time, England were totally dominant. Not the total dominance of our defenders dicking about with the ball for 45 minutes but the kind of dominance where chances are created and the opposition struggle to get out of their own half.

Rashford probably had the best chance of the half after being put through by Kane but Danny Ward came out well to smother his effort.

The highlight though was Harry Maguire's mazy run into the penalty area, blasting the ball towards the opposite corner flag (it went out for a throw in). We'll never know whether it was a cross or shot but the ferocity with which he struck the ball was certainly some Harry Maguire magic (see the highlights below).

2nd Half

Wales made a single change at half time - Welsh superstar Gareth Bale was allowed to leave early to get a good night's sleep. He was totally non-existent in the 1st half so it seemed the decent thing to let him get to bed early for an early tee-off tomorrow.

It didn't take long for England to make the break through early in the 2nd half with 2 quick goals. The 1st, a free kick which was prime Trippier territory, taken by Marcus Rashford. The keeper certainly at fault this time, taking too many steps behind the wall and being beaten in the area of the goal that he should've been covering.

The 2nd saw Kane break down the right and swing a dangerous ball across the 6-yard box for Foden to tap in at the back post.

It was game over already and a question of how many England might score. Instead though, England eased off and gave game time to more of the squad players.

We scored a 3rd mid-way through the half after a long ball over the top by Kalvin Phillips found Marcus Rashford who confidently cut inside and put it through Ward's legs. The keeper should've done better and most 5-a-side keepers would've just stood still and kicked it away.

Post-match Thoughts

The victory puts us through to the Round of 16 and a winnable match against Senegal - we'll certainly go into that as strong favourites.

Marcus Rashford gave a Man Of The Match performance and deserves to keep his place in the team ahead of Raheem Sterling. Phil Foden had a decent enough game but Bukayo Saka's place in the starting XI should be safe for now. Of the players who came in for tonight's game, Rashford's the only one to really give Southgate food for thought.

Henderson shouted a lot, kicked a few people and hurt his ankle.

Match Highlights

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