Hungary held England to a one-one draw in a game played under tense conditions. Hungary and England both posted goals in the first half and the second half remained goalless. A Luke Shaw foul around 24 minutes foul gave a penalty to the Hungarians and Roland Sallai obliged by nailing the penalty. Then, at the thirty-seven-minute mark, the Englishmen had an answer as John Stones netted a goal in a set-piece situation. The second half remained goalless as the English players kept on fluffing chances.
The start of the game looked ugly as it gets. Hungarian fans opposed the knee gestures undertaken by the players of England. The protests got violent when police and stewards looked to control the crowd, leading to clashes between the Hungarian fans and them. It took some time to bring some level of control and this is the context in which the game got underway. Could this have affected England’s production?
I don't think we played at the level we have done and Hungary defended very well. We didn't do enough to win the game. I don't know if subconsciously we thought this was going to be an easier game because we beat them comfortably in September but they've been very good defensively right through the summer. In the first few minutes, we were taking heavy touches and colliding into tackles. We didn't show the composure and quality that we have done generally. "We're in a very strong position in the group but tonight is a big disappointment. We have to make sure we get it right next month.
Gareth Southgate