England vs San Marino LIVE: World Cup qualifier result, final score and reaction tonight
Follow all the action as England aim to secure their place at the Qatar 2022 World Cup when they face San Marino in their final Group I qualifier tonight.
Gareth Southgate’s side know only a draw is required to guarantee they finish top of the group after Harry Kane scored a hat-trick in England’s 5-0 thrashing of Albania last week. San Marino are the lowest-ranked side in the world, according to Fifa’s official ratings, and have lost all nine of their qualifying matches so far. Nevertheless, Southgate has promised that his players will take tonight’s match “very seriously” out of respect for their opponents and the supporters who’ve travelled for the fixture.
The head coach is expected to heavily rotate his side, though, with Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsdale and Emile Smith Rowe set to make their first starts. There could also be a debut from the bench for Conor Gallagher, who received a late maiden call-up to the squad last week after a string of impressive performances at Crystal Palace. “I’ve been very impressed with him,” Southgate said of the 21-year-old. “He deserves to be here.” Follow all the action live below:
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England vs San Marino
England XI: Ramsdale, Alexander-Arnold, Maguire, Coady, Mings, Saka, Phillips, Bellingham, Smith Rowe, Foden, Kane
San Marino XI: Benedettini; Rossi, Fabbri, Battistini; D’Addario, Mularoni, Golinucci, Lunadei, Tomassini; Hirsch, Nanni
6 mins: Maguire gives England early lead
15 mins: Saka’s deflected shot finds the net
27 mins: Kane scores penalty after handball given against hosts
39 mins: Kane completes hat-trick from penalty spot
42 mins: Kane skips through to score his fourth
58 mins: Smith Rowe scores on full debut
69 mins: Mings header makes it eight
78 mins: Abraham gets in on the act
79 mins: Saka makes it double figures
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 10 England (Saka, 79’)⚽️
21:22 , Michael Jones
79 mins: England have 10! Bellingham gives the ball to Alexander-Arnold who passes it out wide to Gallagher. He passes it back to the England right-back who floats another pinpoint cross to the middle of the box where Saka leaves his man, leaps at the ball and heads it home!
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 9 England (Abraham, 78’)⚽️
21:21 , Michael Jones
78 mins: Another great goal from England! Alexander-Arnold gets the assist with a classic cross into the box from the right wing. Abraham holds off a defender, brings the ball down on his knee and then shoots to the far bottom corner on the spin and gloriously guides the ball home.
NO GOAL! San Marino 0 - 8 England
21:18 , Michael Jones
74 mins: Oh no! Jude Bellingham had become England’s second youngest goalscorer with that effort but it’s been chalked off. VAR took a look at the build up and called the referee over to the monitor. Tammy Abraham inadvertantly catches one to the San Marino defenders as Bellingham first passes the ball to him and the goal is chalked off for a foul. Abraham also gets booked for the action. That’s a bit harsh.
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 9 England (Bellingham, 71,)⚽️
21:15 , Michael Jones
71 mins: It’s nine for England! Bellingham runs the ball into the left side of the box and tries to pick of Abraham. He misses the ball but it comes to Gallagher. Gallagher shoots on the spin and hits the back post. The rebound is cleared as far as Alexander-Arnold who whips a cross back into the box. He finds Bellingham who brings down the ball, shifts it to the right and fires it into the back of the net! Great strike from the youngster.
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 8 England (Mings, 69’)⚽️
21:13 , Michael Jones
69 mins: This is so, so simple. Trent Alexander-Arnold lifts the free kick, from the edge of the box, over to the middle of the box where Tyrone Mings is waiting. He gets his head to the ball and whips it into the back of the net!
Red card! Rossi is off!
21:11 , Michael Jones
San Marino 0 - 7 England
68 mins: Things go from bad to worse for San Marino as Dante Rossi hacks Conor Gallagher down just outside his own penalty area. He picks up a yellow card to go with the one from the first half and the referee has no choice but to pull out the red card. San Marino are down to 10-men.
San Marino 0 - 7 England
21:10 , Michael Jones
67 mins: San Marino win a free kick that Golinucci floats into the box. Nanni wins the header from the initial ball and knocks it down to Fabbri. He looks to shoot but Mings nips in to boot the ball away. The clearance comes back to Golinucci who brings it under control and hits a shot from well outside the box but pulls the effort wide of goal!
San Marino 0 - 7 England
21:07 , Michael Jones
64 mins: Chance! It was almost another goal for a debutant. Ben Chilwell flicks the ball over the San Marino back line as Conor Gallagher makes a cutting run into the box. He meets the pass on the volley and tries to guide it into the bottom corner but doesn’t get enough of the ball and sends it safely into the hands of Benedettini.
San Marino 0 - 7 England
21:05 , Michael Jones
61 mins: Harry Kane’s brilliant night is over just after an hours play. He is replaced with Reece James. England now have a lot of players on the pitch pushing for places in the World Cup squad. Quite a few of the players out there will want to get on the scoresheet.
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 7 England (Smith Rowe, 58’)⚽️
21:00 , Michael Jones
58 mins: It’s a first England goal for Emile Smith Rowe! Bukayo Saka has had a fun night. He’s been moved over to the right wing since the start of the second half but he’s been no less effective on the ball. He brings it down the right side before slotting a pass into the box for Abraham wh backheels the ball to Smith Rowe. Smith Rowe hits a first time shot and guides it coolly into the near bottom corner.
San Marino 0 - 6 England
20:59 , Michael Jones
57 mins: Chance! Harry Kane drops a little deeper to collect the ball before turning towards the box and making a through up the middle. Abraham drifts into space and receives a through ball from the England captain and with just the goalkeeper to beat the Roma forward sends his shot over the crossbar!
San Marino 0 - 6 England
20:57 , Michael Jones
54 mins: Manuel Battistini slides into a heavy tackle on Smith Rowe and picks up a yellow card. England just need to be careful that they don’t allow San Marino to fly into many challenges. The pitch is slippery and a mistimed lunge could do someone an injury.
San Marino 0 - 6 England
20:55 , Michael Jones
51 mins: Chance! England aren’t settling for six, they want more goals. Again they attack the penalty area from the left. Saka sends a square pass out to Smith Rowe who feeds it to Chilwell making a run to the byline. He cuts the ball into Bellingham who lays it off for Smith Rowe. He attempts to chip the goalkeeper and lifts it to the back post but it’s not pacey enough to cause Benedettini problems and the keeper plucks the ball out of the air.
San Marino 0 - 6 England
20:52 , Michael Jones
48 mins: Chance! Alexander-Arnold swings a lovely diagonal ball out to Smith Rowe who knocks it down to Bellingham. Chilwell makes a run into the box and collects the pass before sending it back to Smith Rowe on the wing. He whips in a cross and almost picks out Abraham in the box but the striker is punished for a push on his marker. Free kick San Marino.
Second half: San Marino 0 - 6 England
20:47 , Michael Jones
Kick off: Conor Gallagher, Ben Chilwell and Tammy Abraham are on for England. Gallagher makes his senior debut for England having been with the under-21 squad.
Phil Foden, Harry Maguire and Kalvin Phillips are the men replaced.
England break the records
20:42 , Michael Jones
Harry Kane has scored 16 goals for England in 2021, the most any player has netted for the Three Lions in a single calendar year.
The Three Lions have scored six goals in the first half of a game for the first time since November 1946 vs Netherlands (finished 8-2).
Six of Harry Maguire’s seven goals for England have been headed, netting five international goals in 2021 with only Harry Kane (16) having scored more this calendar year for the England.
Kane on fire again
20:37 , Michael Jones
Harry Kane is the man of the moment once again as he scored four goals in the opening 45 minutes against San Marino. Kane is the fourth player to score a hat-trick for England in consecutive appearances, after Vivian Woodward (1909), Dixie Dean (1927) and Tommy Taylor (1957).
Half-time: San Marino 0 - 6 England
20:33 , Michael Jones
45+2 mins: Four goals for Harry Kane, another headed goal from Harry Maguire and an own goal from Filippo Fabbri sees England head into the break with a dominant lead and a place next year’s World Cup.
Bukayo Saka thought he had scored but the goal has eventually been credited as an own goal from Fabbri.
San Marino 0 - 6 England
20:31 , Michael Jones
45 mins: Two minutes of added time to play to end this half. England scored five goals in the first 45 minutes against Albania on Friday evening and they’ve bettered that here. Time yet for another one?
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 6 England (Kane, 42’)⚽️
20:26 , Michael Jones
42 mins: It’s four for Kane! Harry Kane becomes the first England player to score four goals in a match since Ian Wright did so, also against San Marino, back in 1993.
He dances into the box and shuffles past a couple of challenges before slotting home and low shot to the bottom corner. Nice finish from the England captain.
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 5 England (Kane, 39’)⚽️
20:25 , Michael Jones
39 mins: What a penalty! Harry Kane steps up to take it again and blasts it into the top left-hand corner. Benedettini dove the correct way but he’s got no chance of stopping that one. Kane collects his second hat-trick in two games with all three goals coming in the first half once again.
Penalty to England!
20:24 , Michael Jones
San Marino 0 - 4 England
38 mins: England have another penalty! Saka with another cross, Kane with the headed effort, D’Addario with the block using both his arms. Referee Rade Obrenovic doesn’t need VAR this time. He blows the whistle and points to the spot.
San Marino 0 - 4 England
20:22 , Michael Jones
37 mins: San Marino crowd around Ramsdale as the corner ball is curled into the middle but the goalkeeper manages to get high and punch it clear of England’s box.
The Three Lions regains possession and string together a few passes to work the ball back up the pitch.
San Marino 0 - 4 England
20:21 , Michael Jones
34 mins: SAVE! Aaron Ramsdale is called into action as San Marino work the ball up the pitch from a free kick. Hirsh squeezes in front of Alexander-Arnold and brings the ball down on his chest before setting up Nanni for a shot just outside the box. He shoots first time and a deflection off Maguire means Ramsdale has to scurry across and push the ball past the near post with a diving stop!
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 4 England (Kane, 31’)⚽️
20:17 , Michael Jones
31 mins: Total dominance from England. Harry Kane has another, Dante Rossi is having a poor night. England’s left flank is a killer for San Marino. It’s Emile Smith Rowe who’s drifted out there this time and his cross picks out Kane in the box. The England captain scuffs his attempted volley but catches enough of the ball to guide it into the bottom corner.
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 3 England (Kane, 27’)⚽️
20:13 , Michael Jones
27 mins: Kane converts from the spot! He’s scored 13 goals this calender year, more than any other England player before him!
Penalty to England!
20:12 , Michael Jones
San Marino 0 - 2 England
25 mins: Yep. The referee is called over to the monitor, he sees Rossi touch the ball and points to the spot. Harry Kane will have the chance to make history now.
San Marino 0 - 2 England
20:11 , Michael Jones
24 mins: There’s a long VAR check taking place for a potential penalty. It’s against Dante Rossi who got a touch on Foden’s shot with an outstretched hand as it went flying out of play. It’ll be a harsh one but the referee is probably going to give it.
San Marino 0 - 2 England
20:09 , Michael Jones
21 mins: Chance! Massive chance for Phil Foden to score. Kalvin Phillips passes the ball out to Saka on the left side and he delivers another fine cross into the middle. Foden breaks off the shoulder of his marker and tries to finish an overhead kick but misses the target!
San Marino 0 - 2 England
20:05 , Michael Jones
18 mins: Saka is England’s main threat so far. Tomassini, the Sammarinese right-back, has had a torrid time defending against him so far. Saka decides the play the ball back to the edge of the box this time and chips a pass into Bellingham. He brings the ball more central before hitting a low shot from outside the box and slipping during the attempt. Elia Benedettini makes an easy enough save for San Marino.
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 2 England (Fabbri OG, 15’)⚽️
20:00 , Michael Jones
15 mins: England double their lead! Maguire finds Saka with another lovely pass out to the wing and Saka brings it into the penalty area. He spins away from a challenge, cuts inside and hits a right-footed effort at goal. There’s a slight deflection that takes the ball towards Filippo Fabbri who sticks out a leg and guides the ball past his own goalkeeper into the back of the net. Saka has been credited with the goal but this one will probably end up as a Fabbri own goal.
San Marino 0 - 1 England
19:58 , Michael Jones
12 mins: San Marino put together their first attack with Adolfo Hirsch driving forward. The home side commit a few men to the attack but Hirsch loses possession and England break on the counter but don’t make full use of it.
The pitch seems quite slippery which is just causing a few minor problems when the players try to reach full sprinting speed.
San Marino 0 - 1 England
19:56 , Michael Jones
9 mins: Chance! England dilly-dally with the ball in midfield before a chipped pass from Bellingham frees Saka over on the left side. He flicks another nice cross into the area and almost reaches Emile Smith Rowe at the back post but the 21-year-old only gets a glancing touch on the ball and can’t turn it towards goal.
GOAL! San Marino 0 - 1 England (Maguire, 6’)⚽️
19:51 , Michael Jones
6 mins: Harry Maguire scores again! England win consecutive corners. Phil Foden delivers both with San Marino defending the first one well enough but the second is whipped in with a bit more pace. The cross flies over Jude Bellingham but Maguire is closing in behind him and meets the ball with another solid header to the far bottom corner. He’s got two goals in two games for England!
San Marino 0 - 0 England
19:50 , Michael Jones
3 mins: It’s not the quickest tempo we’ve seen England play at but they’re knocking the ball around confidently enough trying to utilise the wide areas. Bukayo Saka swings a cross in from the left wing but overhits it and Alexander-Arnold can’t catch up to it before it goes out of play.
San Marino 0 - 0 England
19:46 , Michael Jones
Kick off: All 22 players take the knee before San Marino get the ball rolling. England win possession in midfield before Harry Maguire sends a diagonal pass over to Bukayo Saka on the left wing. England work it quickly across the pitch but Trent Alexander-Arnold isn’t able to keep it in play on the right flank and San Marino have a throw in.
San Marino vs England
19:41 , Michael Jones
Here come the teams. Harry Kane leads out England, if he scores tonight he’ll have socred more goals in a calender year than any other England player.
Kick off is next...
Almost time for kick off
19:38 , Michael Jones
The warm-ups are over at the Stadio Olimpico di Serravalle. England need just one point to qualify for the 2022 World Cup.
Coady on Kane
19:32 , Michael Jones
England defender Conor Coady has been speaking about what it’s like to play alongside Harry Kane when playing for the national team and he had nothing but positives to for the the England captain. He said:
One of the best, first and foremost, I think he’s a brilliant captain and a fantastic person. I think when you come to England, the way he trains, he looks after himself, he prepares, he does everything to the highest ability that he can do so I think that’s the biggest thing I’d say about him, and then, I think his football does his talking for him.
“You see what he does for Spurs on a weekly basis, I’ve played against him quite a lot now and I can’t explain to you how tough it is, I’ll be honest.
“He’s one of the best strikers in the world and you see that when you come up against him but, like I said, it’s a pleasure to train with him here, just because I look at the way he prepares himself, he looks after his body to make sure he’s right for every single training session and it shows in the goals he scores so an incredible person and an incredible footballer as well.”
San Marino vs England
19:28 , Michael Jones
England will be looking to win their first eight matches versus a single opponent for only the third time, also doing so versus Luxembourg and Ireland.
England have had 21 different goalscorers (excluding own goals) in their seven previous matches against San Marino, with eight of those players netting 2+ goals in a single game.
Group I standings
19:26 , Michael Jones
England are currently top of their group with 23 points. Poland, in second place with 20 points, will play Hungary on Monday, with Albania and Andorra being the remaining group fixture.
If England lose, they shouldn’t, and Poland win then first place will come down to goal difference and England have a six-goal advantage over Poland.
How it stands ahead of the final action in Group I this evening 📊 pic.twitter.com/OPoH5r7LgP
— England (@England) November 15, 2021
San Marino vs England
19:21 , Michael Jones
England have scored 42 goals in all competitions in 2021 – more than they’ve scored in any other calendar year in their history.
Their first match this year was a 5-0 win over San Marino, with the Three Lions last starting and ending a year by scoring five goals in 1993 – 6-0 and 7-1 wins over San Marino in February and November respectively.
Since conceding after eight seconds against San Marino in November 1993, England have only conceded in the first half of three of their 32 away World Cup qualifiers:
Carsten Jancker in the sixth minute for Germany in September 2001, Pavel Sitko in the 28th minute for Belarus in October 2008 and Serhiy Nazarenko in the 29th minute for the Ukraine in October 2009.
England’s trip to San Marino carries simple beauty as more complicated issues lie ahead
19:17 , Michael Jones
While the more complicated questions about Qatar will start to come for England after Monday, a simple beauty shouldn’t be overlooked.
That is the joy of just reaching what Conor Coady giddily describes as “the biggest show on earth”. England are one of only a few countries to have found qualification fairly forgiving in the last few campaigns, but it wasn’t always like that.
You don’t have to go back too far to find a time when the final whistle for games like Monday’s was greeted with jubilation, and celebrated like a league win. You don’t have to look far, either, given the number of countries who are so desperate to be involved.
England ready to revel in simple beauty of reaching a World Cup
Youngster Bellingham reaches 10 caps
19:14 , Michael Jones
Jude Bellingham has won nine caps for England and ended on the winning side in all nine. When he starts tonight he will be the second-youngest player to reach ten caps for the Three Lions (18y 139d), behind only Wayne Rooney (18y 117d) in 2004.
Kane eyeing more records
19:07 , Michael Jones
Harry Kane’s hat-trick against Albania on Friday drew him level with Jimmy Greaves on 44 England goals and the England captain moved to 39 competitive goals for his country, breaking Wayne Rooney’s record of 37.
He needs four goals to draw level with Gary Lineker on 48 England goals and is just nine short of Rooney’s overall record of 53.
Kane has scored 12 goals in 2021 for England – no player has ever scored more in a calendar year for the Three Lions (George Hilsdon in 1908, Dixie Dean in 1927 and Kane in 2019 scored 12 also).
He is averaging a goal or assist every 53 minutes in qualifying matches for England (28 goals, nine assists in 26 appearances).
Line-ups: San Marino vs England
19:02 , Michael Jones
San Marino XI: Benedettini, Battistini, Fabbri, Rossi, Tomassini, Lunadei, Golinucci, Mularoni, D’Addario, Nanni, Hirsch
England XI: Ramsdale, Coady, Maguire, Mings, Alexander-Arnold, Phillips, Bellingham, Saka, Smith Rowe, Kane , Foden
San Marino’s record
19:00 , Michael Jones
San Marino have lost 36 of their 37 home World Cup qualifiers, losing the last 35 in a row by an aggregate score of 146-7. They last avoided defeat at home in March 1993 in a 0-0 draw with Turkey.
The Sammarinese have lost their last 35 qualifying matches (Euros/World Cup), scoring five goals while conceding 163 themselves. They only had one shot in their 4-0 defeat to Hungary last time out.
Gareth Southgate will treat San Marino with same respect as any other nation
18:56 , Michael Jones
England need just a point from San Marino to reach the 2022 World Cup but Gareth Southgate insists he will treat the side ranked lowest in the world with the same respect as any other opponent, having announced that Harry Kane starts on Monday night.
Gareth Southgate will treat San Marino with same respect as any other nation
Southgate on San Marino
18:52 , Michael Jones
Gareth Southgate says he’s treating tonight’s match against San Marino ‘very seriously’ despite the obvious chasm in quality between the two sides.
England are ranked a massive 205 spots above San Marino according to the Fifa rankings but Southgate insists his goal is to secure World Cup qualification with a good performance from the team. He said:
We want a strong performance. We want to make sure the team we start with is a statement that we are here to do business.
"We have not qualified yet. We have got thousands of England fans travelling and we must put on a performance that underlines those facts. We’re taking this very seriously."
San Marino vs England
18:48 , Michael Jones
San Marino are the world’s worst national team in Fifa’s rankings, they are bottom (210th) in the world rankings and have lost all nine group games in qualifying, conceding 36 times and scoring just once.
England have won their seven matches against San Marino by an aggregate score of 42-1, beating them 5-0 in March at Wembley in the reverse World Cup 2022 qualifier.
In San Marino, England have won 14-0 across two visits, winning 8-0 in March 2013 and 6-0 in September 2015. Their other match against the Sammarinese not on English soil was played in Bologna in November 1993, with San Marino taking the lead through Davide Gualtieri after eight seconds before losing 7-1.
Southgate on Gallagher
18:44 , Michael Jones
Aaron Ramsdale and Emile Smith Rowe are set to make their full debuts for England tonight and another debutant may see minutes on the pitch.
Five players (Jordan Henderson, Jack Grealish, Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling and Luke Shaw) dropped out of the squad for various reasons, niggling injuries, dental surgery etc so Crystal Palace’s Conor Gallagher has received his first call-up to the national team.
About Gallagher’s call-up, Gareth Southgate said:
I’ve been very impressed with him. We’ve tracked Conor for a very long time. His loan spells at Charlton, at Swansea which we obviously knew the staff there very well, West Brom and now at Crystal Palace.
“At each loan he’s done extremely well, he’s started the season very well with Palace and we talked about him when we named the original squad as somebody that we were keen to keep an eye on.
“I suppose it was one of the benefits of [him] being with the Under-21s because it was an easy transition for us to bring him across. {He is} already Covid tested and going from one bubble to the other was straightforward.
“That’s not to say he’s only here because of that, he’s here because he deserves to be here but it was an easy transition for us to make.”
Raheem Sterling among five England withdrawals as Conor Gallagher called up
18:39 , Michael Jones
Jordan Henderson, Jack Grealish, Raheem Sterling, Mason Mount, and Luke Shaw have withdrawn from the England squad ahead of Monday’s World Cup qualifier in San Marino.
The Football Association also confirmed Conor Gallagher the Chelsea midfielder currently on loan at Crystal Palace, will join the group in its latest squad update.
Gareth Southgate’s side only need to avoid defeat against the minnows in Serravalle to secure their place in next year’s tournament in Qatar.
Raheem Sterling among five England withdrawals as Conor Gallagher called up
How England qualify for the World Cup
18:36 , Michael Jones
England are currently top of their qualifying group with a three point advantage over second placed Poland with just one match to play.
For their final qualifying fixture the Three Lions have travelled to San Marino where they’ll face the lowest ranked team in the European side of qualifying and a victory should be expected.
Anything other than defeat will see Gareth Southgate’s men on the plane to Qatar but the England boss will be hoping that his players can put in a performance reminiscent of their victory over Albania on Friday night.
🦁🦁🦁 pic.twitter.com/gAMMCxlQk0
— England (@England) November 15, 2021
Gareth Southgate on team changes
18:31 , Michael Jones
England boss, Gareth Southgate, makes seven changes to the starting XI as the Three Lions look to secure the point they need to qualify for the World Cup next year.
Of the changes, Southgate emphasised that he wants to maintain England’s consistant high standards regardless of the personnel on the pitch saying:
We will make some changes but also we haven’t qualified yet for the World Cup and whenever you’re bringing players into the team, you wan stability so that ideally those players can flourish and everybody is clear on their roles and responsibilities.
“In particular we always want strong leadership on the pitch. I think that’s very important in any team you field. We’re playing for England, we’ve set a very high standard of performance the other night and we’ve got to continue that into [the match against San Marino]”
Ramsdale and Smith Rowe make full debuts
18:25 , Michael Jones
The team news is in and, as expected, Aaron Ramsdale and Emile Smith Rowe are both included in Gareth Southgate’s starting line-up for the first time.
Tyrone Mings and Conor Coady join Harry Maguire in central defence, with Bukayo Saka and Trent Alexander-Arnold playing as wing-backs. It’s a midfield pairing of Kalvin Phillips and Jude Bellingham, with Smith Rowe and Phil Foden on either side of Harry Kane.
Your #ThreeLions to take on San Marino! 🏴 pic.twitter.com/qBQI7miqFa
— England (@England) November 15, 2021
England face San Marino in final World Cup qualifier
14:39 , Michael Jones
Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage as England face San Marino in their final qualifier for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
Gareth Southgate’s side only require a draw to ensure they top Group I and should encounter few problems against the world’s lowest-ranked side, who have lost all nine of their qualifying fixtures so far.
With that in mind, the England coach is set to make several changes to his starting line-up, with Aaron Ramsdale and Emile Smith Rowe in line for their first starts.
