LONDON: In their final European Championship qualifying match, England wrapped up their campaign with a hard-fought 1-1 draw against North Macedonia.
Despite the draw, Captain Harry Kane expressed pride in their achievements, highlighting their group-topping position and a six-point lead over Italy.
Having secured their spot in next year’s finals in Germany with two games to spare, England maintained an unbeaten run in Group C, although they fell behind in Skopje when Enis Bardhi capitalized on a penalty following Rico Lewis’s foul. The team levelled the score in the second half with an own goal from Jani Atanasov.
Reflecting on the challenging game, Kane, who came on in the second half, acknowledged the difficulty of playing against a resilient opponent on a challenging pitch, stating their belief that they were more likely to score a second goal. Kyle Walker, donning the captain’s armband for the first time, expressed disappointment that England couldn’t secure a win but acknowledged the need to capitalize on such opportunities in the future, despite the circumstances of a short week and having already qualified.
