Internationals Update: Victorious and Unscathed

Two wins in two games for Liverpool duo Jordan Henderson and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in England colours. After starting and impressing in a flawed victory against Malta, the pair were picked by England manager Gareth Southgate to face Slovakia. England went behind in the opening minutes but battled back to win 2-1 thanks to goals from Eric Dier and Marcus Rashford.

Henderson retained the captaincy and lasted the full ninety, but Oxlade-Chamberlain was largely disappointing before being replaced by Raheem Sterling with seven minutes of regulation time remaining. Andrew Robertson was part of a Scotland side that dispatched Malta 2-0 to trail second-placed Slovakia by a single point. Robertson got forward and put some dangerous crosses for opposition defenders to think about, something that Liverpool attackers will look to benefit from in the weeks ahead.

As for Emre Can, he sat on the bench as Germany destroyed Norway 6-0 to maintain a formidable 100% record in World Cup 2018 qualifiers. Can sitting the game out will be good news to Liverpool ahead of a trip to Manchester City given that the 23-year-old’s physicality, temperament, and focus in big games provide a necessary edge in key moments.