Sir Sterling leads the way

It has not been his easiest season nor his brightest, but Sir Raheem Sterling, who has just been awarded the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth, has appeared when his country needed him most. With England, with whom he has been 13 in the last 17 games, the Englishman, who lost the title a couple of months ago after a scuffle with Guardiola, is growing, and it shows. Good game from Southgate, who started a final phase match with victory for the first time, one that also leaves good feelings against an entire team like Modric's Croatia.

Sweeping from the start, It didn't take England five minutes to launch the first warning. A ride from Sterling, who was tasked with carrying the weight of danger from the pross, ended in Foden's shot that crashed into Livakovic's right post. During those first bars in which Southgate's men deserved to get ahead, Gvardiol, among the less common in Croatia, surprised a central defender converted to a full-back who, at 19, has become a very interesting signing for Dinamo Zagreb.

The main problem for the Croats was, in any case, that the absence of Mandžukić, that striker who snatched the World Cup final from England in Russia with his goal in 109 ', was leading the team a bit at the top. The bet on Rebic as a false '9' did not come out for Zlatko Dalić, and surely that means that Budimir, Osasuna forward, can count on more minutes during this European Championship. At the Three Lions, Leeds United's Kalvin Phillips showed that he can be one of those players who are going to be worth a lot more when the tournament is over.

It was precisely he who, in the 11 'of the second half, He leaked a ball between the lines for Sterling to break the equality on the scoreboard and unblock the game. The English, exulting in the stands, respected the safety distance to the point of jumping on the unfolded canvases to guarantee the safety distance. Soon after, Kane, who did not make a great game, crashed into the post trying to finish a ball, but recovered without major complications.