England Player Ratings vs. Croatia: Rampant Three Lions Attack Feasts on Record-Breaking Night

England handed out Croatia’s biggest defeat of all time.

England was in a rampant mood, battering Croatia in Rijeka. | Michael Regan/The FA/Getty Images

England produced an outstanding attacking display to inflict a record defeat upon Croatia on Saturday evening, as Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka both struck twice in a remarkable 7–0 rout.

The result all but assures England of at least second spot in Group A3, and thus a spot in next March’s UEFA Nations League quarterfinals. Its Matchday 6 tussle with Spain will likely decide who wins the group, with La Roja boasting the advantage after their 3–2 victory at Wembley at the start of the break.

The world champion thumped Croatia 4–1 last time out, but England’s battering in front of 100 travellng fans and a few thousand schoolchildren was harsher and even more emphatic.

All of Thomas Tuchel’s starting attackers got in on the act, with record goalscorer Harry Kane adding two more strikes to his tally at the start of both halves. Anthony Gordon’s mightily impressive break continued as he teed up Jude Bellingham for the second before heading home a third himself.

Bukayo Saka’s quest to find his most potent self was aided by some wretched Croatian defending, as Bellingham turned provider to tee up the Arsenal man before the break.

It wasn’t the first time England had found itself 4–0 at half time this calendar year, but Slaven Bilić’s stunned outfit seemingly had no desire to stage the sort of resurgence that France did during the third-place playoff at this summer’s World Cup.

After Kane’s second, Saka joined his captain with a brace, and Arsenal’s “starboy” missed a gilt-edged chance to score his third soon after. A seventh did arrive via substitute Morgan Rogers, who was merely the last England attacker to benefit from Croatia’s pitiful defensive line.

---

One Thing We Can’t Ignore

England was on a different level in Rijeka. | Bradley Collyer/PA Images/Getty Images

“In front of 6,000 kids, Croatia are getting a bit of a schooling,” ITV Sport’s Sam Matterface summarized on commentary after Anthony Gordon headed in England’s third from Jarell Quansah’s cross in a stadium that was initially expected to be empty as a result of a UEFA ban for previous crowd unrest. The children were subsequently given the chance to watch the game instead, but may have wished they hadn’t.

More than eight years have passed since Croatia came from behind to defeat the Three Lions in a World Cup semifinal, and this was the fifth time the two nations have locked horns after Mario Mandžukić crushed English hearts in Moscow.

Yet remnants of that fixture remain. Harry Kane continued his fine record in this fixture by scoring twice, and on the opposite side, a 41-year-old Luka Modrić attempted to keep pace with England’s ferocious and dynamic engine room.

While Croatia’s midfielders triggered a state of English retreat then, it was the Three Lions who forced their counterparts to submit in Rijeka. This was absolutely everything that Thomas Tuchel wants his England team to be: fierce out of possession and ruthless with the ball. The level between the two teams was staggering, as England destroyed the overwhelmed hosts, who are struggling to transition beyond their golden generation.

This team may well never top what they achieved at the Estadio Azteca on July 6, given the context, but there’s no doubting that this was as sparkling an England performance as we’ve seen under Tuchel.

---

England Player Ratings vs. Croatia (4-2-3-1)

Bellingham was on the scoresheet again for the Three Lions. | Michael Regan/The FA/Getty Images

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Jordan Pickford—7.4: A quiet afternoon for England’s No. 1 on his return to the team.

RB: Jarell Quansah—7.7: Replacing Trent Alexander-Arnold, Quansah masqueraded as his former Liverpool teammate for a brief moment, crossing superbly for Gordon to head in England’s third goal.

CB: Ezri Konsa—7.6: A comfortable outing for the Arsenal defender, who was seldom troubled by Croatia’s sporadic attacks.

CB: Marc Guéhi—7.7: Guéhi‘s keen to prove that his costly mistake against Spain was no more than a blip, and he wasn’t flustered at all in Rijeka.

LB: Lewis Hall—8.2: Has an excellent relationship with Gordon down the left flank. Hall was comfortable on the overlap and when a more central position was required. Defensively had no issues.

CM: Elliot Anderson—7.9: Excluding the build-up error that somehow didn’t return a Croatia goal, Anderson was superb. The bustling midfielder created England’s fifth goal after half time, setting up Kane.

CM: Alex Scott—7.4: This was some time to make your full England debut. There’s no doubt that English supporters will want to see a lot more of Scott going forward.

RM: Bukayo Saka—9.0: Eased his way into the contest and found his mojo. This was undoubtedly a huge step in the right direction for Saka, who should’ve repeated his feat from the third-place playoff and netted a hat trick.

AM: Jude Bellingham—9.8: If it hasn’t come already, this was surely the game that made Luka Modrić realize he can’t hang with the very best anymore. The Croatian veteran was chasing Bellingham’s shadow throughout.

LM: Anthony Gordon—9.1: Gordon was rather self-deprecating about his aerial abilities after he nodded England into the lead in Prague, but the Barcelona man was at it again here, heading home England’s third from close range. Croatia couldn’t deal with his off-ball runs.

ST: Harry Kane—9.3: Rinse and repeat for Sir Harry. Just another day out with the fellas.

SUB: Eberechi Eze (70’ for Kane)—6.5: Helped England run amok in transition during the closing stages.

SUB: James Garner (70’ for Scott)—6.4: Ended up at left back as Tuchel tinkered with his team.

SUB: Morgan Rogers (71’ for Gordon)—7.6: Finished the drubbing by timing a run in behind an oddly high defensive line and rounding Dominik Livaković.

SUB: Myles Lewis-Skelly (79’ for Hall)—6.3

SUB: Morgan Gibbs-White (79’ for Anderson)—6.0

Subs not used: Jason Steele (GK), James Trafford (GK), Trent Alexander-Arnold, Trevoh Chalobah, Jarrad Branthwaite, Rio Ngumoha, Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

---

What the Ratings Tell Us

Scott looked dynamic on his full England debut. | The FA/Getty Images

• It’s no mystery why there’s suddenly an aura surrounding Anthony Gordon. The Scouse-born winger has long been regarded as unspectacular in profile, often described as a “manager’s dream” given the work he gets through. Now, he’s one of England’s main men. A move to Barcelona has perhaps convinced Gordon of his own talent, and he’s certainly performing like a player currently donning the colors of one of soccer’s grandest institutions. Tuchel was shuffling between the Barça star and Marcus Rashford in the summer, but the former has quickly converted the left-wing position into one he has no interest in relinquishing.
• Tuchel added a sense of intrigue by handing Bournemouth’s Alex Scott his full England debut, playing him alongside Elliot Anderson in midfield. This was hardly an imposing atmosphere—one he’s familiar with on the South Coast—yet Scott still took to the international stage like a duck to water. His role in the opening goal was subtle, but encapsulated what he’s all about: forward thinking. It wasn’t just Jude Bellingham who made Luka Modrić look every bit his age.
• Trent Alexander-Arnold probably should’ve gone to the World Cup, but Tuchel’s decision not to pick left back Lewis Hall has looked similarly curious during this break.

---

The Numbers That Explain England’s Beatdown of Croatia

• England was nothing short of rampant in the first half, generating a whopping 3.52 xG. Its four goals were no fluke. The visitors ended with a total of 6.14 xG.
• The Three Lions became the first nation to score five goals in an away game against Croatia. A 7–0 defeat was the biggest in the host’s history.
• Croatia’s first shot on target didn’t arrive until the 91st minute.
• This was England’s ninth straight away win outside of major competitions.

Statistic	Croatia	England
Possession	36%	64%
Expected Goals (xG)	1.37	6.14
Total Shots	12	19
Shots on Target	1	10
Big Chances	1	11
Pass Accuracy	86%	92%
Fouls Committed	10	6
Corners	1	6

---