England player ratings vs Czechia: two 8/10s and one 9 as Newcastle and Leeds United stars make case to Tuchel
How England’s players rated after their 2-0 Nations League win over Czechia
England put their 3-2 loss to Spain behind them last night as they secured their first win of the 2026/27 campaign, defeating Czechia 2-0 in Prague. After a tricky opening period for the Three Lions that saw their opponents have more than their fair share of possession, the game was turned on its head as opposition star player Pavel Sulc was shown a straight red card for a wild challenge on Elliot Anderson.
Thomas Tuchel’s side took a little while to use the extra man to their advantage, but came tearing out of the traps in the second half, with Anthony Gordon netting soon after the break, before skipper Harry Kane scored England’s second and final goal with twenty minutes of play left.
The result saw England move second in their Nations League group, three points behind Spain and level on points with Croatia. The Three Lions will now travel to Rijeka, where they’ll take on Croatia - a side they beat 4-2 in the 2026 World Cup - this Saturday before they round off the three-week international break by hosting Czechia next Tuesday.
As Tuchel’s men look to go on a winning streak, we’ve given our player ratings from England’s important win in Prague.
England player ratings vs Czechia: goalkeeper and defence
GK: James Trafford (7) - Jordan Pickford can’t go on forever, and Tuchel has made the wise decision to blood Trafford in a relatively low stakes international environment. The Leeds stopper put in a better performance than he did against Spain, making a smart save when called upon and impressing again with his composure and accuracy of distribution.
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold (8) - Much was made of England’s decision not to take the ex-Liverpool star to last summer’s World Cup, especially when the side were so limited when it came to options at right-back. The Real Madrid star put in a fine showing against Czechia, demonstrating his exceptional passing range and providing a tidy assist for Gordon’s goal.
CB: Marc Guehi (6) - The Manchester City defender responded well to criticism of his sloppy mistake that gifted Spain their first goal at Wembley last weekend. Granted, he didn’t have the busiest of nights, but he was part of a back line who managed to keep a clean sheet and rarely looked troubled by the opponents’ attack theat.
CB: Trevoh Chalobah (6) - Eyebrows were raised at Chalobah’s inclusion in the England squad, but the ex-Chelsea star has been highly impressive at Como so far this season, who are punching well above their weight in Serie A. Like Guehi, he didn’t have an awful lot to do against the Czechs, but he did his chances of future selection no harm at all.
LB: Lewis Hall (7) - He adapted Tuchel’s full-back requirements well, drifting into midfield when required to give England’s attack some extra bit going forward. He was a lightning quick going forward, didn’t shirk his defensive duties, and was unlucky not to end up on the scoresheet in the second half. All in, he made a compelling case to challenge Nico O’Reilly for his left-back spot.
England player ratings vs Czechia: midfield and attack
CM: Miles Lewis-Skelly (6) - A solid enough, if underwhelming midfield performance. Filling the Declan Rice void was always going to be a tough task, but he’s managed to step in for his Arsenal teammate and given a decent account of himself. However, he made a rash challenge in the first half that saw him receive a booking.
CM: Elliot Anderson (7) - His composure on the ball gave England the control they needed in midfield, and ensured the side used their extra man to their advantage especially as their opponents began to tire. He’s now an integral part of the Three Lions’ midfield, and will likely continue to be so for the foreseeable future.
AMR: Bukayo Saka (6) - We’ve still not seen the best of Saka in an England shirt for some time, and it was another frustrating performance for the Arsenal star on Tuesday evening. His lack of a final product let him down once again, although he did come close to scoring towards the end of the first half.
AMC: Morgan Rogers (7) - Rogers also came close to netting in the same frenzied period of attacking play towards the end of the first half, only to be denied by the post. It wasn’t a vintage performance from Chelsea’s £117m summer signing, but he did carry plenty of threat going forward and impressed with his rapid close-range passing.
AML: Anthony Gordon (9) - England’s star man on the night made it two goals in two games with an electrifying performances against the Czechs. He gave their right-back Stepan Chaloupek a brutal schooling, continually turning the Slavia Prague defender inside out with his direct attacking play and relentless dribbling.
ST: Harry Kane (8) - Kane shrugged off the disappointment of missing a penalty in the defeat to Spain by scoring a trademark clinical finish against Czechia. It was a relatively quiet night for the England legend, but he went about his business professionally and led from the front impeccably once again.
Substitutes: Eberechi Eze (7), Alex Scott (7), Rio Ngumoha (7), Jude Bellingham (7), Morgan Gibbs-White (7)