Anthony Gordon Stays On Fire As England Dominate Czechia In Thrilling Display

England claimed their first victory of the 2026–27 UEFA Nations League on Tuesday, securing a 2–0 win in Prague against a Czechia side that spent the majority of the match with a numerical disadvantage.

Czechia created the game's opening opportunity when Pavel Šulc pounced on Elliot Anderson's failure to clear, forcing an early stop from James Trafford within the first five minutes.

England dominated possession, with the Czech hosts sitting in a deeper defensive block than Spain had previously, yet the visitors struggled to carve out clear-cut chances in the early stages. The tide began to turn when Morgan Rogers rattled the post after 15 minutes, with two follow-up efforts blocked. Around the midway point of the first half, Anthony Gordon threatened but failed to find the target. He came even closer shortly after, only to be denied by former Manchester United goalkeeper Matěj Kovář, who was sharp to stop the Barcelona winger.

Between those two Gordon attempts, Czechia were reduced to ten men when Šulc was dismissed. His reckless challenge on Anderson at mid-calf level was initially shown a yellow card, but VAR intervened and the referee upgraded the punishment to a red card upon review.

Kovář kept out a Harry Kane effort in first-half stoppage time but was powerless to stop Gordon's headed goal just minutes after the break. The in-form attacker got down low to meet a bouncing delivery and guided the ball into the net.

England hit the frame of the goal again when Ladislav Krejcí deflected a Lewis Hall cross onto the post, before Harry Kane eventually doubled the advantage in the 69th minute. The Bayern Munich striker reacted fastest to a loose ball and drove it home with his left foot from close range.

Rogers, Eberechi Eze and Jude Bellingham all had opportunities to add to England's tally in the closing stages.

One Thing We Can't Ignore

Thomas Tuchel chose to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold out of the World Cup squad over the summer. "The amount of players in a certain position," was the manager's explanation for omitting the Real Madrid defender, even though injury-prone Reece James was the only recognised right back included in the squad.

That exclusion had been signalled earlier, however. Alexander-Arnold had battled fitness issues in the opening months of last season and was notably absent from the squad Tuchel selected for key March friendlies.

He was handed a recall for this camp—as a right back despite operating in midfield for Real Madrid in the Champions League—and was told "it is now time to fight for his place."

Alexander-Arnold had not featured for England since June 2025, with his last start coming nearly two years ago—against Finland in October 2024.

All that time away from the national team now seems like a missed opportunity. He remains arguably England's finest right back, and one can only wonder what impact his quality might have had at the World Cup.

It was a delivery of exceptional quality that set up Gordon's opening goal, as he whipped the ball into a zone Czechia simply could not deal with.

Tuchel had challenged Alexander-Arnold to "perform" to earn his spot in the side, and he responded with a determined sprint to win a loose ball ahead of Czech defender Krejcí.

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

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: James Trafford—7.6: Made a crucial early save on his second consecutive start. He was rarely tested beyond a fairly routine stop in the second period.

RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold—8.4: Having sat out the Spain match over the weekend, his long-awaited return to the England starting lineup could hardly have gone better.

CB: Trevoh Chalobah—7.6: Grew increasingly comfortable once Czechia were reduced to ten men. Misplaced just one pass from 79 attempted.

CB: Marc Guéhi—7.7: Needed a clean, composed display after the difficulties against Spain.

LB: Lewis Hall—8.2: Transfer talk has raised his profile in recent months, but this was a chance to cement his status as an England regular, and he delivered.

CM: Elliot Anderson—7.6: Escaped punishment for an early error that could have gifted Czechia a goal, but bounced back to contribute a solid overall performance.

CM: Myles Lewis-Skelly—7.4: The dynamic may shift once Declan Rice returns, but Tuchel is clearly backing him in midfield. Delivered a steady showing before being withdrawn at the break after picking up a yellow card in the first 45 minutes.

RM: Bukayo Saka—7.2: More influential than he had been against Spain, though there is still more to come from him.

AM: Morgan Rogers—6.8: His touch seemed slightly off throughout. He was involved regularly, including striking the post, but nothing quite clicked for him.

LM: Anthony Gordon—8.4: Has now scored in back-to-back England games during this international break. Perhaps it comes down to his football intelligence. It's a shame some English fans fail to "appreciate" just how talented he is.

ST: Harry Kane—7.4: Netted his customary goal. That's now nine in 11 England appearances in 2026.

SUB: Eberechi Eze (46' for Lewis-Skelly) —6.5: Fashioned a couple of openings and came close to finding the net himself.

SUB: Alex Scott (70' for Anderson) —6.8: Becomes only the second player from Guernsey to earn a senior England men's cap. His step-sister, Maya Le Tissier, is also an international for England.

SUB: Jude Bellingham (71' for Kane) —6.2: Given limited game time to keep him fresh ahead of upcoming fixtures. Forced a fine save in the dying moments.

SUB: Rio Ngumoha (71' for Saka) —6.5: Showed real promise on his senior debut at just 18 years old.

SUB: Morgan Gibbs-White (81' for Gordon) —N/A

Subs not used: Jason Steele (GK), Jordan Pickford (GK), Ezri Konsa, Jarell Quansah, Jarrad Branthwaite, James Garner, Jude Bellingham, Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

What the Ratings Tell Us

The Numbers That Explain England's Triumph