London, Oct 4 (IANS) England will look to carry the momentum from their emphatic 7-0 demolition of Croatia into their next UEFA Nations League encounter against the Czech Republic, with head coach Thomas Tuchel bolstering his squad by calling up Manchester City defender Rico Lewis.
Lewis has been promoted from the England Under-21 squad after City teammate Nico O’Reilly was forced to withdraw from the senior setup with an injury.
Lewis’ return provides further depth to an England squad that has been strengthened by the team’s recent run of results. The Manchester City defender has five senior caps but has not played for the Three Lions since November 2024, when he featured in the 3-0 win over Greece.
England produced one of their most convincing performances of the campaign against Croatia in Rijeka on Saturday, scoring seven times without reply.
Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka scored twice each, while Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon and substitute Morgan Rogers were also on the scoresheet as England dominated from the opening whistle.
Kane opened the scoring inside eight minutes before Bellingham doubled the advantage in the 21st minute. Gordon added a third six minutes before half-time, with Saka making it 4-0 on the stroke of the interval.
Kane completed his brace after the break before Saka struck again, while Rogers rounded off the rout late in the game.
The result gave England their second win of the Nations League campaign and continued their strong start under Tuchel. The Three Lions currently have six points from three matches and sit second in the group, behind leaders Spain, who have a perfect nine points.
England are also six points clear of the Czech Republic, who are yet to register a point. Tuchel’s side had already defeated the Czechs 2-0 in Prague on September 29, with Gordon and Kane finding the net.
O’Reilly, meanwhile, has returned to Manchester City for further assessment after picking up a knock. The midfielder was part of England’s squad during the international break and featured in the 3-2 defeat to Spain.
–IANS
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