England-Malta talking points

Gareth Southgate’s reign as interim England manager began with a 2-0 victory over Malta in Saturday’s World Cup qualifier at Wembley.

Southgate, in temporary charge after Sam Allardyce’s departure last week, watched as Daniel Sturridge headed the opener in the first half, with Dele Alli dispatching their second before a quiet second half.

Here, we pick out five talking points from a solid but unspectacular victory for the Three Lions…

Southgate makes winning start

A few weeks ago Gareth Southgate was expecting to spend the international break preparing for the U21s’ meetings with Kazakhstan and Bosnia and Herzegovina, but Allardyce’s sudden departure has thrust him into an unfamiliar role, and he can have few complaints about his first game in charge.

It was not the thrashing many people had anticipated, but England could hardly have been more comfortable. Eighty per cent possession and 20 shots to Malta’s one highlighted their dominance, and their two-goal half-time lead allowed them to coast through the second period and conserve their energy for Tuesday’s trip to Slovenia.

A meeting with Malta is unlikely to have much bearing on whether Southgate gets the job on a permanent basis, but it’s a platform to build on and the 46-year-old was pleased with the result. “I thought we did some very good things,” he told Sky Sports. “After a difficult 10 days, for them to play like they did in the first half was pleasing. There’s a lot more to come.”

Henderson pulls the strings

Jordan Henderson has made a strong start to the season with Liverpool and his impressive …

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