25 March 2019 - A ruthless England survived an early scare to stroll past Montenegro 5-1 in their European Qualifiers clash in Podgorica on Monday night.
Creator Ross Barkley then turned scorer as he touched in Callum Hudson-Odoi's shot (38) after his Chelsea teammate cut in dangerously from the flank on his first England start at just 18.
The impressive Barkley got his second and England's third with a simple finish from Raheem Sterling's cut-back (59), Harry Kane got in on the act by tapping home (71), again from Sterling's unselfish centre, and Sterling himself then wrapped up the win with a cool finish from sub Jordan Henderson's fine through ball (81).
England now look ahead to June's UEFA Nations League after two convincing wins from two in European Qualifiers Group A, and have now won five consecutive matches for the first time under Gareth Southgate having scored five for the second time in four days.
England dominated the ball early on, but Montenegro went ahead with their first attack as Hudson-Odoi failed to get up for a header, allowing Vešović to run towards the box, unintentionally play a one-two with England defender Keane and curl past Jordan Pickford from 15 yards.
But Keane atoned for his sloppiness for the opener by levelling for England just after the half-hour mark, tucking a header into the bottom right corner from Barkley's free-kick on the right.
By then, Hudson-Odoi had switched from right to left wing, and the tactical move had paid off as he cut in from the flank well and saw his shot touched home by Barkley ahead of goalkeeper Danijel Petković.
Hudson-Odoi looked bright going forward, and his excellent run and shot forced a good stop from Petković after the break, but Barkley gave England a two-goal cushion as he finished off at the back post after Sterling's centre from the by-line had fortuitously fallen into his path.
Kane got his 22nd goal for England in 37 caps, tapping home directly from Sterling's pass as Barkley had superbly played in the Manchester City man, showcasing England's quality on the counter.
Source: Sky Sports
