Bukayo Saka rejected comparisons between his form at the 2022 World Cup and Kylian Mbappe's breakout campaign four years ago ahead of England's meeting with France.

Saka scored his third World Cup goal as England overcame a nervous start to beat Senegal 3-0 in Sunday's last-16 tie, setting up a heavyweight quarter-final clash with Les Bleus.

Having started three of England's four games in Qatar from the right, Saka may be expected to help contain Mbappe next time out, which promises to be a difficult task after the Paris Saint-Germain star moved onto five goals for the tournament in his side's 3-1 win over Poland.

Mbappe joined Pele as just the second teenager to score in a World Cup final in 2018, and Saka does not wish to compare his own debut campaign with that of the Frenchman. 

Asked whether he could follow in Mbappe's footsteps by being named young player of the tournament, Saka said: "Thank you for the compliment, but there's only one Kylian Mbappe.

"At the same time, there's only one of me. I just want to be myself and help my team in the best way I can.

"There are many young players in this tournament, I can name so many.

"Even in our team, alongside me there's another young player doing unbelievably well in Jude Bellingham. I'm just happy that we're all here and doing well.

"The priority is to try to win the tournament, rather than to be the player of the tournament or young player of the tournament."

Asked about Bellingham's displays in the England midfield, Saka added: "He's a special player. I don't really know the words to describe him.

"I just hope he can continue to keep progressing because, for sure, he has a massive, massive future."

Saka's previous major tournament campaign ended with him missing the decisive penalty in England's Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy, but the Arsenal winger believes his World Cup displays have gone some way to helping him banish that memory.

"Personally, I feel like I've tried to move on from that moment," Saka said. "I know I can never really forget about it, it's going to be history, but at the same time, coming out here and scoring those three goals has lifted me a lot.

"And of course, the love from the fans that I keep receiving lifts me a lot as well. It gives me a lot of confidence and I love to see it."

With the prospect of taking part in another penalty shoot-out if the France match is a tight one, Saka insisted he would have no qualms about stepping up once again.

"I have matured and progressed a lot since that moment - I wouldn't have stepped up the number of times I have for Arsenal if I was not confident," he said.

"If the moment comes and I am selected to take it, I will be more than happy to."

Kyle Walker can counter Kylian Mbappe when England face France in the World Cup quarter-finals as the Manchester City star is "the best right-back in the world" to face the forward, according to Gary Neville.

The Three Lions set up a last-eight match with Les Bleus after seeing off Senegal with a 3-0 victory inspired by Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden.

Gareth Southgate's side will face one of the toughest tests in world football against Didier Deschamps' defending champions, particularly with Paris Saint-Germain forward Mbappe in fearsome form.

But Neville feels England are well-equipped to keep him quiet, pointing to Walker as the key man who can thwart the threat posed by the 23-year-old.

"I think we have the best right-back in the world to be able to deal with Kylian Mbappe," the former England and Manchester United full-back told Sky Sports. "In terms of physicality, pace and experience, I can't think of anyone better to match Mbappe than Kyle Walker.

"That's not to say he'll keep him quiet for 90 minutes as Mbappe is sensational and special. But we have a chance as Walker can match him in certain areas."

Qatar 2022 marks the third successive tournament at which England have made the quarter-finals, having been beaten semi-finalists at Russia 2018 before losing the Euro 2020 final on penalties. 

Neville was part of the England side that reached the Euro 1996 semis, while he was also in the squad that suffered quarter-final shoot-out losses to Portugal at Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup.

Nevertheless, he is all too aware of the rarity of the occasion for Southgate's squad, adding: "It's a game of a lifetime on Saturday.

"When I think back to my own career, these games are once-or-twice-in-a-lifetime opportunities. They don't come around in your life very often."

In facing the reigning holders, Neville believes the pressure will be off, with defeat not likely to be considered an upset in the way a loss to Senegal would have been.

"I don't think the lads will be able to wait for it," he added. "This is a game we can lose we know that, they are world champions and a fantastic team.

"I always think you can go and enjoy games like this as there is less pressure than playing against Senegal. As if you get knocked out there, all hell breaks loose."

James Anderson says England's incredible 74-run Test victory over Pakistan may be the best he has ever played in.

The tourists took a 1-0 lead in dramatic fashion late on the final day at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Jack Leach taking the final wicket with the light fading rapidly.

Seamers Anderson and Ollie Robinson were outstanding, generating reverse swing with an old ball on a placid pitch as Pakistan were bowled out for 268 in a run-fest after a bold day-four declaration from Ben Stokes.

Anderson took 4-36 and Robinson 4-50, while Stokes also bowled brilliantly in England's first away Test victory over Pakistan for 22 years - and only their third of all time in the country.

The evergreen Anderson felt the victory on a surface that was a batter's paradise could be the finest of his long Test career.

Asked if he had seen anything like it, he told Sky Sports: "I don’t think I have actually. It's probably one of the best wins I've been involved in, if not the best.

"On a pitch like that, to play the way we did, to score runs at the rate we did, we gave ourselves a chance to get the result.

"It was an unbelievable effort from everyone. We knew it was going to be difficult, it just feels like with Ben and Brendon [head coach McCullum], their mantra is 'we've got to take wickets'. We look to take wickets all the time.

"We knew it was a big push, we dug deep to get anything out of that wicket."

Anderson, Robinson and Stokes bowled 66 second-innings overs between them in a Herculean effort in the heat.

The 40-year-old Anderson said "I think we all kept each other going. At times each of us was tired and one of us would pick the other up. We managed to get through some long spells.

"It's nice to have the win but I don't think tomorrow will feel great for me. It was a long five days."

Ben Stokes reiterated his England side have little interest in drawing games after a dramatic denouement saw them claim a 74-run victory over Pakistan in the pair's first Test.

In the tourists' first red-ball visit to the country since 2005, an aggressive performance with bat and ball paid off as Jack Leach beat the dying light on the final day to dismiss Naseem Shah.

Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum's tactical approach on a flat surface yielded a Test match with the third-highest aggregate number of runs in history, and an early declaration that set up a thrilling final day.

James Anderson and Ollie Robinson struck in a rip-roaring passage after tea to check the ultimate momentum of any Pakistan chase, and Stokes acknowledged vindication for his game-plan in the aftermath.

"We've no interest in drawing," he stated. "On pitches like this, you have to make things happen, [you have to] make some bold decisions. We had to entice the batters to play a shot at times.

"I think it's maybe up there with England's greatest away wins. The toil everyone has put in is hitting. We've done something very special this week.

England had not won in red-ball cricket in Pakistan since a famed win in Karachi in 2000, and there were similarities to its sundown finale as England raced to snag their final wickets before the light was gone in Rawalpindi.

It is a feat made all the more impressive by how the tourists pulled together after a virus outbreak in the build-up left questions over whether the Test would actually proceed as intended.

"There's a few things you can plan for, which is the way we want to approach Test cricket," Stokes added. "But what you can't plan for is what happened to the squad a few days before. That seems a long time ago.

"I want to give our group of players a lot of credit for coming here and turning up, a little bit under the weather. Will Jacks got the nod to make his debut about three minutes before team-time,

"You can go through this whole Test match and pick out key individuals. I think with what we've had to deal with coming into this Test match makes this win feel a little bit better."

Opposite number Babar Azam was left to rue missed opportunities for his side, Pakistan having entered the final session needing only 86 to win with five wickets in hand after tea.

"We were not up to the mark," he added, "We had a golden chance to win this Test, but session by session we lost wickets. All credit to our bowlers, it was difficult.

"We had our opportunity but we couldn't get partnerships in the end. We have a lot of positives, so we will try to continue that in the next match."

Surrey Police has confirmed it is investigating a report of a burglary as England and Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling returns home from the World Cup in Qatar.

The 27-year-old was not involved in England's last-16 win against Senegal on Sunday, with manager Gareth Southgate saying Sterling was heading home and telling ITV: "clearly the priority is for him to be with his family and we're going to support that."

England officials put it down to "a family matter" before kick-off, with the BBC reporting a break-in at Sterling's London area home occurred on Saturday night.

A statement released by Surrey Police on Monday confirmed an investigation was underway into a burglary in Oxshott, Leatherhead.

"Police were contacted just before 9pm on Saturday December 3rd after the occupants of the property came home and discovered a number of items including jewellery and watches had been stolen," the statement read.

"Enquiries to establish the circumstances are underway and the investigation is ongoing.

"No threat of violence was involved as the items were discovered stolen retrospectively. Enquiries into the circumstances are ongoing. No arrests have been made at this time."

Surrey Police did not confirm if the incident was related to Sterling when contacted by Stats Perform.

It remains to be seen whether Sterling travels back to Qatar in time to feature in the Three Lions' quarter-final against France on Saturday.

Ollie Robinson and James Anderson starred as England claimed a famous 74-run win in an enthralling first Test against Pakistan at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

Ben Stokes was rewarded for a bold declaration when the tourists claimed a first away victory over Pakistan in the longest format for 22 years on a benign pitch late on the final day.

Robinson took 4-50 and the evergreen Anderson 4-36 before Jack Leach ended a defiant last-wicket stand with the light  fading to bowl Babar Azam's side out for 268 after they were set 343 to win.

England's seamers were outstanding, generating sharp reverse swing with an old ball to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series in their first Test in Pakistan for 17 years.

Anderson struck an early blow after Pakistan resumed on 80-2, snaring Imam-ul-Haq caught behind by Ollie Pope down the leg side for 48.

Saud Shakeel (76) and Mohammad Rizwan (46) took their side on to 169-3 at lunch, but Pakistan's wicketkeeper-batsman nicked Anderson through to Pope early in the afternoon session.

Keaton Jennings, the substitute fielder due to a tour-ending knee injury sustained by Liam Livingstone, took a brilliant diving catch at short cover off the bowling of Robinson to remove Shakeel.

Azhar Ali (40) played with great composure, after retiring hurt on day four with a finger injury, as he combined with Agha Salman to frustrate the tourists, Stokes and Anderson bowling excellent spells without further reward.

Pope dropped Azhar off Robinson down the leg side off the next ball, but the seamer ended a stand of 61 by trapping Salman leg before and then had Azhar caught by Joe Root at leg slip.

Naseem Shah had a huge stroke of luck with the first ball he faced when Robinson clipped his off stump but the bails stayed on, but Pakistan were eight down when Pope took a stunning catch for Anderson down the leg side to see the back of Zahid Mahmood.

Anderson got Haris Rauf lbw and although Mohammad Ali and Naseem dug in for just under nine overs, the latter fell lbw to Leach to give England one of their greatest wins after Stokes left it late to take the new ball.

Robinson and Anderson swing the game in England's favour

You would expect the spinners to play a massive part on the final day, but it was the reverse swing generated by England's seamers that was crucial.

Robinson generated sharp movement in the air, striking twice early in the last session to set England well on their way to victory.

Anderson was also magnificent, the 40-year-old once again showing age is no barrier as he bowled 24 probing overs on a lifeless pitch.

Stokes can do no wrong

Captain Stokes became only the third England captain to win a Test in Pakistan after Ted Dexter and Nasser Hussain.

The skipper could not have wished for a better start to his reign, beating New Zealand, South Africa and India on home soil this year and leading the side superbly in this remarkable Test.

Marcus Rashford "deserves everything that's happening now", according to Manchester United team-mate Hannibal Mejbri.

After a difficult 2021-22 campaign, Rashford started this season strongly, and has carried that form into the World Cup with England in Qatar, where he has hit three goals.

The 25-year-old scored just five times in 32 Premier League games last season for United, but already has eight goals in 19 appearances in 2022-23.

Hannibal – who is spending the season on loan at Championship club Birmingham City – had also been playing at the World Cup with Tunisia, who were eliminated in the group stage. 

Speaking to Stats Perform, the 19-year-old praised Rashford as a player and a person, with the United forward engaging in significant charitable work over recent years.

"I'm enormously happy because when I was at Manchester United, that's when he [had] a bit of a struggle, but he never let up," Hannibal said.

"He's a very good guy and he deserves everything that's happening now and he's worked tremendously hard for it, so I'm very happy for him."

Hannibal joined United from Monaco in 2019 for a fee of around £8million (€10m), and made two appearances for the first-team last season.

The midfielder described what it was like coming in to the Red Devils' academy when he first arrived, in particular the difficulty of doing so with a sizeable fee having been paid.

"It's very difficult when you come into a youth dressing room with a €10m price tag," he said. "You go into the dressing room, everyone judges you.

"But after a training session or two, you show your qualities and everyone accepts you. So that's how it is and that's football now, you have to put aside what people think of you, work, stay focused."

United head coach Erik ten Hag has made an impressive start to life at Old Trafford, and despite being out on loan, Hannibal confirmed the Dutchman has been keeping an eye on his progress.

"The staff, the technical staff always stay informed with us, the players on loan," he said. "So yes, if you do something bad, he tells you, if you do something good he congratulates you too. So yes, he stays in touch and it's a great pleasure."

England must be considered among the world's very best sides and they are capable of going all the way in Qatar, says Kalidou Koulibaly.

The Three Lions defeated Koulibaly's Senegal 3-0 on Sunday at Al Bayt Stadium to seal their place in the last eight of the World Cup.

England, World Cup semi-finalists in 2018 and Euro 2020 finalists last year, are the tournament's leading scorers with 12 goals, while they have conceded only twice across their four matches.

France are next up for England on Saturday and while Koulibaly knows the Les Bleus will provide the sternest of challenges, he believes Gareth Southgate's team have every chance of going even deeper into the tournament.

"They are very good. We know that they have a lot of talent, a lot of big players, we know all of them," Koulibaly told reporters.

"They played very well, they can go far, but the next game will be tough against France. I hope the best will win.

"They have so many options but we know every game is different in the World Cup. You can score a lot in one game and then the next one will be difficult to score.

"They have to keep going and believe it, I think they can go far."

After losing to the Netherlands in their opening Group A match, Senegal – shorn of star player Sadio Mane through injury – beat Qatar and Ecuador to progress in second place, and Koulibaly is happy with what the Africa Cup of Nations champions have achieved in Qatar.

He said: "It was a beautiful tournament for us. We wanted to get out of the group stage, we did it, and now it was a tough game against one of the best teams in the world. We can be proud of what we did."

Koulibaly's Chelsea club-mate Edouard Mendy added: "Dealing with defeat is not difficult. We came up against a better team than us, we have to accept that, England played at their best.

"They also had all their players at their disposal while we were missing some key players. We had to play without Sadio. We also had Idrissa [Gueye] and Cheikhou [Kouyate] missing.

"So when you play against a team like that with key players missing, it is complicated.

"But throughout the tournament and throughout the year, we have shown that Senegal is more than 11 players, it is a group.

"We will continue to move forward, to progress and we will come back stronger in the 2026 World Cup, God willing."

England Women took a 1-0 lead over the West Indies Women following their 142-run victory in the first ODI at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Sunday.

Batting first, England was led by Natalie Sciver, who scored a game-high 90 from 96 balls, amassed 307-7 from their 50 overs. Sciver and Dani Wyatt shared in a fifth-wicket partnership of 103 in just under 17 overs that took the match beyond the reach of the West Indies Women. Wyatt contributed 68 to the mammoth total.

Tammy Beaumont (33) and Amy Jones (30) also made useful contributions.

Chinelle Henry was the best of the West Indies bowlers taking 3-59. Afy Fletcher took 2-66.

The West Indies Women were never able to cope with the demand of scoring more than six runs an over and unable to form useful partnerships, were bowled out for 165 in 40.3 overs. The exception was a 70-run second wicket partnership between Kycia Knight and Rashada Williams that produced a respectable 70 runs. Both were dismissed for 39 and 34, respectively.

Captain Hayley Matthews, who retired hurt early on, returned to score 34 for the home side.

Charlie Dean took 4-35 and Kate Cross 2-27 for the victors.

Matthews lamented her team’s inability to stick to the game plan.

"Both facets of the game (batting and bowling) we didn't do what we wanted on a decent and England was able to capitalize on it,” the captain said.

“We're going back to the drawing board and see what we can improve on in the next game. Our power play was pretty good but we let a little too many runs go by in the middle overs. It was good to see the partnership between Kycia and Rashada and I hope we can get a few more of those.”

Liam Livingstone has been forced to withdraw from England's tour of Pakistan after suffering a knee injury.

The all-rounder was making his debut Test appearance in the first encounter in Rawalpindi, and scored nine runs from 10 balls in the first innings as the tourists posted 657.

Livingstone jarred his knee while fielding by the boundary on day two and has played no further part in fielding since, though did return to score seven not out in England's second innings.

After undergoing a scan on Sunday, it has been decided the 29-year-old will head home to begin treatment.

England have not yet made a decision whether to call up a replacement, but potential options of those already in the squad include teenager Rehan Ahmed, also a leg-spinning all-rounder, and pace bowler Mark Wood.

The second Test in Multan begins on Friday.

Jude Bellingham looks close to the complete player for former England defender Gary Neville, after the midfielder sparked a World Cup victory against Senegal.

The teenager nabbed an assist and helped fire Gareth Southgate's side into the quarter-finals in Qatar with a 3-0 win on Sunday, in another superb individual showing.

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Bellingham has emerged as a key figure for the Three Lions this tournament, and looks to have staked his place firmly in the starting line-up.

Neville certainly feels it is a place well earned by the 19-year-old, and said he appears to already have a mastery and maturity in an England shirt that few others have.

"It's very rare you see a midfield player as comfortable in his own half as in the attacking half," he told ITV. "He looks like he can do absolutely everything.

"Is he a holding player, an attacking player? He's everything in one. He's fantastic, [and] so young, but it's the composure, maturity and fearlessness I can't get my head around.

"I watched players play for England for many years, the weight of the shirt was enormous. He just doesn't feel it at all, he looks like he belongs out there, like he wants it and needs it in his life."

Bellingham and England will face holders France in their quarter-final tie, with the pair set to meet on Saturday in the concluding match of the last eight.

England are not getting the credit they deserve for their World Cup performances, so says Declan Rice, who claimed other nations will fear the Three Lions.

Despite a sluggish start to Sunday's match at Al Bayt Stadium, Gareth Southgate's side eased through to the quarter-finals of the World Cup with a 3-0 victory over Senegal.

Jude Bellingham starred as Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka scored to set up a tie with France on Saturday.

England have come under some criticism for their pragmatic approach to major tournaments under Southgate, yet after four games they are the top scorers in the competition with 12 goals, while they have conceded just twice at the other end.

"I'm delighted. It was a real top performance," Rice said.

"There was a lot of energy, some great goals. We knew Senegal posed a massive threat but we shut them down and now we march on.

"I've said it all along – we've not been getting the credit we deserve with our performances. If you look at other teams, like the Netherlands and Argentina, they win their games comfortably and it gets called a masterclass, but with us it always gets picked off.

"If you look at our last couple of games we've been faultless. Other countries should be fearing us now.

"I think we're starting to silence the critics. Going into the tournament there was always a lot of talk that we don't score enough goals - again, that's another one we've kept people quiet on. There was scrutiny around the defence and conceding goals but it's been solid so we're going to keep building and pushing."

Rice did add: "We're building a solid foundation and it's down to us now – there's no point being buzzing about tonight if we can't push on and beat France."

While Rice turned in a typically composed display at the base of England's midfield, Bellingham was the star of the show.

The Borussia Dortmund midfielder set up Henderson's opener and played a crucial role in Kane making it 2-0 on the stroke of half-time.

"He's thriving on the main stage," Rice said of the 19-year-old. "It makes me happy to see that, when you've got a player like that who is so strong and athletic, creating the chances he's creating.

"He's been doing it for Dortmund all season and is now doing it for us. It was a real collective team performance from us tonight all over the pitch, magnificent."

Of going up against France and the World Cup's leading goalscorer Kylian Mbappe, Rice said: "These are the game we want to play in. England versus France quarter-final – it doesn't get bigger than that. We've got six days now to prepare, we know the world will be watching and we want to progress."

Gareth Southgate felt his trust in youth paid dividends after watching his Three Lions youngsters guide England past Senegal and into the World Cup quarter-finals.

Nineteen-year-old Jude Bellingham provided steel and energy in midfield while Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden – selected ahead of Marcus Rashford and Jack Grealish – contributed the craft as England won 3-0 at Al Bayt Stadium.

The result sets up a mouthwatering quarter-final clash against defending champions France on Saturday.

Bellingham and 22-year-old Foden enjoyed assists for the first two England goals, scored by Jordan Henderson and Harry Kane, while 21-year-old Saka scored the third from another Foden cross.

It amounted to a satisfying night for manager Southgate, with Bellingham particularly catching the eye.

"I don't think we could have predicted how quickly he would mature, even in the last three months that's gone to another level," Southgate said of the Borussia Dortmund midfielder.

"We wanted to invest in young players on the basis that we felt they could be something special in the future. It's meant the likes of Bukayo has 20-odd caps already coming to a tournament like this, [Declan] Rice was in the squad at 19…

"You suffer a bit sometimes because they're not perfect when they come in. But you can see the mentality, and further down the line you get the kind of performances we are now getting. The three youngest players we felt had earned that trust in a game of this size, and they've shown great maturity and all contributed in their own way."

France will present an entirely different challenge to Senegal, and Southgate is a huge admirer of Didier Deschamps' side.

"It's the biggest test we could face," Southgate said. "They are world champions, have an incredible depth of talent and outstanding individual players that are very difficult to play against. It's a great challenge."

Kylian Mbappe scored twice in France's 3-1 victory over Poland earlier on Sunday to take his tally to five goals for the tournament, and he will be the man England have to pay the closest attention to.

Southgate said: "He's a world-class player, he's already delivered big moments in this tournament and other tournaments.

"They also have [Antoine] Griezmann who has played over 70 consecutive games for France, he's a phenomenal player, we know Olivier Giroud so well, and they have outstanding young midfield players.

"Everywhere you look in every age group, they have incredible depth in every position. It's a huge test but one we are looking forward to."

Senegal arrived in Qatar as African champions and with high hopes, but frequent lapses in concentration defensively have contributed to their exit.

Coach Aliou Cisse refused to criticise his players and instead highlighted the challenge they face in trying to bridge the gulf in quality to the best sides in the world.

He said: "We played a very good England team, you saw that, and we just weren't as good as we should have been.

"We were missing two or three players that could've made a difference. But you could see the difference in the teams tonight. We have worked hard to become the best team in Africa, but tonight we were playing one of the top five teams in the world and you could see the difference.

"We were 18th in the rankings before tonight and we were playing one of the big five, so it's an ongoing process."

Cisse agreed to add another year to his contract last month, extending it to 2024, but refused to discuss his future when asked.

"I don't want to talk about that," he said. "We've just lost a game, are knocked out of the tournament, and I will need to draw the lessons from this game. Currently, I am coach of this team, and we'll see what the future brings."

Harry Kane is hoping to hit a run of scoring form after breaking his duck in Qatar in the 3-0 victory over Senegal.

The Golden Boot winner from Russia 2018 failed to score during the group stage but opened his World Cup 2022 account in the last 16 to double England's lead shortly before the break.

Kane's goal moved him to 11 in a major tournament for the Three Lions, surpassing Gary Lineker in that regard, and the England captain hopes to extend his record.

"As a striker, scoring goals is what you do and its one of the best feelings you can have in football. I was waiting patiently to score," he said after the game.

"I feel good and hopefully this can start a good run for me personally as this can help the team as well.

"As you saw today, we had players scoring from different positions which is really important when you get in the later stages of the tournament.

"It was nice for me to score but the main thing was a really good team performance."

England are now braced for Saturday's challenge against defending champions France, who have lost just once in the knockout stages of the World Cup under Didier Deschamps – against eventual champions Germany in 2014.

Kane is under no illusion regarding the importance of the game but feels if you want to go all the way, you have to defeat the best.

"Saturday will be a difficult game. France are a great team, reigning world champions, so it will be a tough evening. We have a couple of days to recover before another important game.

"If you want to win the World Cup you have to play the best sides the world and France are definitely one of them."

Raheem Sterling missed England's World Cup last-16 match against Senegal after travelling home following a raid by armed intruders on his home, Stats Perform understands.

The Chelsea forward was absent from Gareth Southgate's squad for the 3-0 win over the Africa Cup of Nations champions on Sunday.

England officials put it down to "a family matter" before kick-off, and it remains to be seen whether Sterling travels back to Qatar in time to feature in the quarter-final against France next Saturday.

The BBC reported the break-in at Sterling's London area home occurred on Saturday night.

Manager Gareth Southgate said after England's victory: "Raheem is having to deal with a family situation. He's going back to England. We have to give him time to try to resolve that, or be there for his family. That’s the most important thing; we are going to give him that space.

"It didn't impact team selection. I spent a lot of time with Raheem this morning, so you have days where events happen and you have to deal with them. He's on his way home. We are obviously mindful of him being allowed space and respect his privacy, so we don't want to talk about it in too much detail.

"It's not ideal for the group ahead of the big game, but it pales into insignificance – individual is more important than group in these moments."

The scorer of England's opening goal, Jordan Henderson, told ITV: "I hope everything's okay with Raheem's family at home and I hope he goes back and can sort everything out. Hopefully he can then come back, but I suppose he'll have to assess when he gets there. All our thoughts and support is with him."

England defender Eric Dier was asked by Stats Perform about Sterling's absence, and said: "We all wish him and his family well. We hope everyone's okay.

"I just found out before the game. I don't know more than that, just wish him all the best."

Midfielder Declan Rice indicated the day had begun as any other, with Sterling in camp.

"I literally saw him at breakfast this morning and then the manager said he's had some difficulty with his family at home," Rice said. "We'll send him a message and wait to hear more."