MY ACCOUNT
Bukayo Saka felt England showed the quality they possess as they thrashed Iran 6-2 in their opening World Cup game.
The Arsenal ace scored twice for the Three Lions as Jude Bellingham, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford and Jack Grealish chipped in with a goal apiece to get Gareth Southgate’s men off to the perfect start.
Saka, 21, admitted that the team knew they needed a good first performance in Qatar after a difficult 2022 saw them finish bottom of their Nations League group.
He said: “We needed that good start. Obviously we weren’t at our best coming into the tournament and there was a lot of talk about our form.
“But we showed everyone how much quality we have and what we can do.
“It’s amazing. But we know we have to be consistent because the next game is coming up in a few days and we have to win again.”
On a personal level, Saka was thrilled to mark his first World Cup game with a brace after missing a penalty in the Euro 2020 final shootout.
Saka added: “I can’t describe the feeling, it is amazing. I am so happy, so proud and we got the win as well so it is a really special day.
“I feel like I’m in a good place. I have the support from the fans, I really feel the love from the fans, from the coaching staff and from the team-mates.
“That is all I need and I am ready to give 100%. I gave that and I will continue to do that.”
Teenager Bellingham netted his first international goal 35 minutes in to ease any England nerves after a disjointed start.
And the 19-year-old knows the importance of learning how to break down teams who sit back and defend deeply.
Bellingham said: “It’s a really good day for us. Six goals in a World Cup game is really impressive, regardless of who you are playing against.
“They were really strong and hard to break down. We didn’t have anything clear for a while and I think with more goals [scored] we opened them up.
“But the start was tough and we had to dig them out, because we weren’t getting it all our way.
“It is important that we learnt how to create chances against those sort of sides — and we are a bit disappointed with those two goals conceded.”
The Three Lions will now regroup ahead of Friday’s second Group B clash against USA.
