Second-half goals from Cole Palmer, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Harry Kane fired England to a 3-0 friendly win over Bosnia & Herzegovina.
Palmer dispatched a 60th minute penalty into the bottom-right corner after Ezri Konsa had been fouled by Benjamin Tahirovic, which marked his maiden goal for England.
Alexander-Arnold doubled England’s lead with a clinical 85th minute strike into the left-side netting from Jack Grealish’s cross to the right post.
England’s victory was wrapped up by a 89th minute effort from Kane in a scrappy goalmouth scramble.
Speaking to Channel 4 post-match, Palmer described his first international goal as a “great feeling,” as he looks to secure a place in the final squad selection for UEFA Euro 2024.
Just 13 days away from their opening Euro 2024 match against Serbia, England manager – Gareth Southgate handed several fringe players a run out, as just four players who began their draw against Belgium in March were named in the starting line-up.
England however were made to play their attacking football out wide early on but their first chance came in the ninth minute, as in-form Palmer fed Ollie Watkins whose shot was saved by Nikola Vasilj.
Conor Gallagher curled over in the 18th minute as England continued to press but Vasilj again came to Bosnia & Herzegovina’s rescue in the 27th minute.
Eberechi Eze had quietly been England’s brightest spark on the left in a dull opening half-hour as he broke forward apace and cut in across the edge of the box, from which he found Konsa to shoot but Vasilj made a crucial block and Jusuf Gazibegovic cleared to safety.
Haris Hajradinovic meanwhile mounted the visitors’ best chance of the first half as he pounced upon a 41st minute error by Marc Guehi, but could only put his shot wide beyond a diving Jordan Pickford as the half ended goalless.
England struggled to improve early in the second-half despite Palmer seeing two shots denied in the space of three minutes, but the pressure eventually told as Tahirovic fouled Konsa from a 57th minute corner.
Video-Assistant Referee (VAR) ruled the incident as intentional following a review to give England a penalty on the hour mark, from which Palmer slotted into the bottom-right corner to put the Three Lions ahead.
Southgate however was ready to ring the changes with five substitutions – during which Jarrad Branthwaite and Adam Wharton came onto the pitch for their maiden senior international caps.
Their fellow substitute, Harry Kane almost made an impact in the 71st minute after he met Konsa’s deep cross to the right-post, but he could only nod his effort wide.
James Maddison meanwhile fumbled his 81st minute shot from Jack Grealish’s slick pass as England began to finish the match on top, in an otherwise underwhelming performance.
Grealish’s pace and movement eventually unlocked a second goal in the 85th minute, as the winger cut in from the left and found Alexander-Arnold unmarked to rifle into the left-side netting from the right post.
England’s victory was assured with a scrappy 89th minute strike from Kane following pinball play inside the box, which fell for Europe’s top goalscorer to calmly slot in amidst a goalmouth scramble.
England will now head to Wembley Stadium, London, on Friday 7 June for their final warm-up friendly against Iceland, ahead of the official 26-man squad being named on Saturday 8 June.
Teams:
England – Jordan Pickford, Ezri Konsa, Kieran Trippier (Wharton 62′), Marc Guehi (Branthwaite 62′), Lewis Dunk (Gomez 73′), Conor Gallagher, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jarrod Bowen, Cole Palmer (Maddison 61′), Eberechi Eze (Grealish 63′), Ollie Watkins (Kane 62′)
Substitutes: Joe Gomez, Aaron Ramsdale, Jarrad Branthwaite, Jarell Quansah, Declan Rice, Ivan Toney, Jack Grealish, James Maddison, Harry Kane, Curtis Jones, Dean Henderson, Adam Wharton, James Trafford
Bosnia & Herzegovina – Nikola Vasilj, Jusuf Gazibegovic, Stjepan Radeljic (Hadžikadunić 74′), Nikola Katic, Ermin Bicakcic (Mujakić 74′), Anel Ahmedhodzic (Muharemovic 82′), Armin Gigovic (Burnic 82′), Dario Saric (Huseinbasic 63′), Ermedin Demirovic (Tabakovic 74′), Haris Hajradinovic, Benjamin Tahirovic
Substitutes: Dennis Hadžikadunić, Denis Huseinbasic, Haris Tabakovic, Edin Dzeko, Osman Hadžikić, Nihad Mujakić, Dzenis Burnić, Madzid Sosic, Kenan Piric, Tarik Muharemovic
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