Boos rang out as England left the field after a 3-1 loss to Senegal in a friendly on Tuesday which marked the first defeat of Thomas Tuchel’s tenure as coach.
Senegal recovered from conceding Harry Kane’s early goal to become the first team from Africa to record a victory over England.
“We’re not going to panic. But, for sure, we know we need to do better,” England captain Kane told broadcaster ITV and suggested England had lost “that aggressive nature that we’ve had.”
In World Cup qualifying on Tuesday, the Netherlands beat Malta 8-0 and Austria beat San Marino 4-0.
England’s landmark loss
Kane was the only player retained in Tuchel’s starting lineup from last week’s 1-0 win over Andorra, which had caused Tuchel to criticize his team’s attitude. The changes brought little improvement.
Kane’s record-extending 73rd England goal gave his team the lead in the seventh minute, when he bundled in after a goalkeeping error by Edouard Mendy.
Senegal was a step above Tuchel’s previous England opponents Albania, Latvia and Andorra, and England conceded for the first time in his tenure in the 40th minute.
Nicolas Jackson chased down a long pass and hooked it back for the onrushing Ismaila Sarr to score after having outpaced Kyle Walker.
England lost, 3-1. (Photo by Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)
Senegal’s second goal followed a long ball to Habib Diarra, who seemed to be attempting a pass of his own when the ball deflected in off goalkeeper Dean Henderson’s leg.
Jude Bellingham thought he’d leveled the game for England with a goal at a corner in the 84th, but it was ruled out for an earlier handball by Levi Colwill. Senegal made it 3-1 when Cheikh Sabaly finished off a counter in stoppage time.
Depay ties a Dutch record
Memphis Depay tied the scoring record for the Netherlands men’s national team with two goals in the eight-goal win over Malta.
Depay scored in the ninth and 16th minutes for his 49th and 50th goals, equaling a record set by team great Robin van Persie. Depay hit 50 goals in his 102nd game for the Netherlands, while van Persie’s 50th came in his 101st game in 2015.
In other World Cup qualifiers in Europe on Tuesday, Romania won 2-0 against Cyprus, Serbia beat Andorra 3-0 and Latvia drew 1-1 with Albania.
Finland’s game against Poland was suspended because of a medical emergency with Finland leading 2-1. The game later resumed.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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