Ben White went from zero to hero, and then back to zero as England were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw against Uruguay.
The Arsenal defender was met with boos from some Three Lions fans when he came on at Wembley amid his surprise squad recall.
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White controversially made himself unavailable for England in March 2024 after a reported falling out with former assistant Steve Holland.
He responded to the boos by scoring his first international goal with a simple tap-in at the back post on 81 minutes.
However, White was then penalised in stoppage time for a foul on Federico Vinas and after a quick VAR review, Uruguay won a penalty.
Federico Valverde smashed his effort past debutant James Trafford and into the bottom left corner to salvage a draw for the visitors.
Whilst Uruguay arrived as tough opponents, many of those playing for England did little to impress with the World Cup on the horizon.
Large chunks of the seating at Wembley were vacant before the full-time whistle as their side failed to dazzle under the lights.
eSPORTY’s chief football anchor Adrian Durham was in attendance and delivered a worried assessment of the performance.
“A terrible England performance and a waste of a friendly,” he said in his post-match reflection. “England’s best XI needs to play together to get better.
“This was a ragbag mishmash mainly made up of players who won’t even be at the World Cup.”
Durham also questioned head coach Thomas Tuchel’s decision to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold out of his 35-man squad.
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The Real Madrid defender has not played for England since June, and Tuchel told eSPORTY he hadn’t spoken to him amid his omission.
Alexander-Arnold even has the backing of David Beckham, who told Drive how it would be difficult not to take him to the World Cup.
“We needed to bring on someone who can switch play or break lines with some brilliant passing,” Durham insisted. “If only Trent Alexander-Arnold had been on the bench…”
Durham further stressed his disappointment by giving 2/10 ratings to White, Phil Foden and Dominic Solanke.
Doesn’t Fode well
It’s been a difficult couple of years for Foden, with his form for both England and Manchester City taking a hit.
He was named in the starting XI but played only 56 minutes before his fellow City academy graduate Cole Palmer replaced him.
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Foden showed a lack of creativity and looked a shadow of his former self with another underwhelming display.
Performance aside, he was lucky to avoid serious injury following a dreadful tackle from Ronald Araujo that somehow went unpunished.
However, Durham is fearful of Foden’s chances of being selected in the England squad this summer.
“His first corner sailed over everyone’s head and went straight out of play,” he said. “He lasted 54 minutes, and I don’t think he’s going to the World Cup.”
Not worth the wait
Whilst playing for the relegation-threatened Tottenham Hotspur, it was arguably a surprise to see Solanke earn a call-up this month.
With Harry Kane not joining them until Saturday, he was named as the starting striker for England ahead of Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
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But the 28-year-old, making his first senior England appearance since 2017, could not take advantage of a golden chance to impress Tuchel having posed little threat to the Uruguayan defence.
“At 28 with well over 150 Premier League appearances, I expect his first touch to be better,” Durham said.
“We can’t waste a place in the World Cup squad with Solanke.”
Wild night for White
For around ten minutes of play, it looked as though White was going to have the last laugh.
His goal sparked some much-needed celebration from England fans and was the perfect response to the boos.
But the mistimed challenge on Vinas presented Uruguay with a route back into the match, and Valverde then guided them to the draw.
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White’s performance was a prime example of how quickly things can change in football, and Durham was anything but sympathetic.
“Booed on by the Wembley crowd, booed even when he scored. It’s all he deserves for the disrespect of the last four years,” he explained.
“Tapped in the goal, and then gives away a penalty with a stupid challenge.
“If something Steve Holland said upset him so much he had to quit international duty, God knows what he made of thousands of fans booing him when he scored a goal for England at Wembley.”
Adrian Durham’s England v Uruguay player ratings
James Trafford – 6
Tino Livramento – 4
Harry Maguire – 7
Fikayo Tomori – 4
Djed Spence – 6
Jordan Henderson – 4
James Garner – 5
Phil Foden – 2
Noni Madueke – 5
Marcus Rashford – 7
Dominic Solanke – 2
SUBS
Adam Wharton – 6
Cole Palmer – 7
Dominic Calvert-Lewin – 4
Jarrod Bowen – 4
Ben White – 2
Harvey Barnes – 3
Kobbie Mainoo – 5
