England manager Gareth Southgate insisted his team should be wary of their “tricky” Qatar World Cup draw that could see them taking on UK rivals Scotland or Wales.
The Three Lions were drawn alongside the USA, Iran and the eventual play-off winners out of Wales, Scotland or war-torn Ukraine.
They take on Iran on the opening day of the finals on November 21, in what will be a first senior international meeting between the countries. The game take's place eight days after the Premier League begins a six-week break.
They will then aim to beat the United States — scheduled for November 25 — in a World Cup finals match at the third attempt, after a shock defeat in 1950 and a draw at the 2010 finals in South Africa.
Should they get out of that pool, they will face one of hosts Qatar, the Netherlands, Senegal or Ecuador in the last 16. They could then go on to meet world champions France in the quarter-finals.
“We've got to get out of the group,” said Southgate. “Out first objective is to get out of the group and then we build from there.
“The advantage of being in pot one based on our seeding is that most of the draws we’ve had … you avoid the biggest teams.
England 3 Senegal 0: player ratings
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ENGLAND RATINGS: Nick Pope: 6 - The England shot stopper didn’t have to make a single save during the match and was rarely on the ball, as the rest of the team were so far up the pitch. AFP -
Tyrick Mitchell: 6 - The youngster started on the left of the back four, often bursting forward but rarely being found with a pass forward. This was best seen when he ran beyond Grealish but the ball went backwards rather than in his direction. AFP -
Tyrone Mings: 7 - The Aston Villa defender had little to do at the back and was comfortable on the ball going forward. He also added to England’s goal tally late on, scoring a free header from a corner. Action Images -
Harry Maguire: 6 - The 29-year-old was comfortable on the ball and did the basics well at the back. Action Images -
Ben White: 6 - The defender had to fill in at right-back for the first-half, making a fine interception on Gradel down the flank. He was tidy in possession but did little going forward before being substituted. AP -
James Ward-Prowse: 5 - The Southampton captain struggled to add his usual quality to the game. His set-pieces were poor, overhitting most of them towards the goalkeeper. AFP -
Declan Rice: 6 - The midfielder had little to do, but he had one bright chance when he joined the attack, cutting in on his right before blasting his shot over. PA -
Jude Bellingham: 7 - The 18-year-old played in an advanced midfield role, finding space between the opposition lines. A highlight of his play was a clever one-two with Sterling, with his resulting shot hitting the post. AFP -
Jack Grealish: 8 - The winger did well when carrying the ball into the box, bursting in on the left to pull the ball back to Sterling for the second goal. PA -
Ollie Watkins: 6 - The 26-year-old caused few issues for the opposition defence. He did get on the score sheet though, tapping into an empty net from close-range. AFP -
Raheem Sterling: 9 - England captain on the night, the winger consistently caused problems for the Ivory Coast defence. A solo effort saw him pick up the ball in the box and drive past Aurier, setting up a tap-in for Watkins. He then scored one for himself with a cut-back from Grealish. PA -
SUBS: Kyle Walker-Peters (For White 46’): 6 - The Southampton youngster came on at right-back but had little to do in the way of defending. He pushed forward with the rest of the team as they circulated possession in the second half. PA -
Luke Shaw (For Mitchell 62’): 6 - The left-back came on and showed some sparks of his quality running down the flank. He ran the line well on one occasion, whipping a ball across the face of goal that was cleared. Getty -
Harry Kane (For Watkins 62’): 5 - The captain had few chances, often swarmed by players and losing the ball. This was most evident in one phase where he had four players closing him outside the box. PA -
Phil Foden (For Grealish 62’): 6 - The 21-year-old came on and played on the right, but was defended very well by Konan. As a result, a lot of the play went down their left instead, meaning he saw little of the ball. Action Images -
Emile Smith Rowe (For Sterling 62’): 7 - The Arsenal playmaker caused a few problems on the left when he came on, beating his opposition full-back on one occasion and leaving them on the ground with his neat piece of skill. Getty -
Conor Gallagher (For Ward-Prowse 80’): N/R - The 22-year-old came on as fresh legs late in the game, pressing hard as the game drifted to its conclusion. Getty -
IVORY COAST RATINGS: Badra Ali Sangare: 7 - Despite his side’s troubles, the goalkeepers pulled off some saves that stopped the scoreline being worse. His best was to deny Bellingham from close range, pushing the ball on to the post. Reuters -
Hassane Kamara: 4 - The Watford full-back was constantly challenged defensively, especially in the first-half by Sterling. He was beaten far too easily by the England winger, who on one occasion flicked the ball over his head to get a shot off. EPA -
Eric Bailly: 6 - The Manchester United defender did a fine job of dealing with Watkins’ runs on the shoulder, making one challenge to stop him going through on goal. He was then substituted in the second half. Reuters -
Simon Deli: 6 - The centre-back also dealt with the lone England striker well, helping cover the space behind. He had a chance to score from a free-kick, but blasted his free shot over the bar. EPA -
Serge Aurier: 2 - The former Tottenham full-back had an awful outing at Wembley, beaten far too easily by Sterling on the wing for the opener. He then received a second yellow card in the first-half, reducing his side to ten men. Getty -
Jean Michael Seri: 4 - The Fulham midfielder consistently struggled to deal with threats behind his lines. He was booked for a poor challenge on Sterling and consistently gave the ball away, such as his simple back pass that went out for an England corner. Getty -
Franck Kessie: 6 - The AC Milan midfielder acted as a leader at times during a difficult evening for his nation. He made a few crunching challenges, such as one on Rice that was necessary to the defence regaining shape again. Getty -
Maxwel Cornet: 5 - The Burnley wideman was another that struggled on the ball, giving it away on multiple occasions. One time saw him pass the ball back under little pressure and giving away a corner. AP -
Max Gradel: 6 - The 34-year-old was fine in possession but had little to do before he was substituted off at half-time. Reuters -
Sebastien Haller: 5 - The Ajax striker had few touches of the ball, rarely getting any chances to receivel. His brightest opportunity came from dropping deeper before he was fouled. PA -
Nicolas Pepe: 5 - The Arsenal winger did little as his side struggled to progress forward. The one chance he had, he miscontrolled the ball out of play and gave away a goal kick. Getty -
SUBS: Willy Boly (For Pepe 46’): 7 - The Wolves defender had a fine game from the bench, adding stability to the backline. He tracked Kane well when he came on, dispossessing him outside the box on one occasion. AP -
Emmanuel Agbadou (For Bailly 46’): 6 - The centre-back equally came on to add stability, helping with a reduction in chances for the hosts. EPA -
Fousseny Coulibaly (For Gradel 46’): 5 - The 32-year-old had a shaky game from the bench, giving away a penalty for a rash challenge before it was overturned. PA -
Ghislain Konan (For Cornet 64’): 6 - The left-back came on to help refresh the side, defending the flank well and forcing the play through England’s left instead. AFP -
Paul Akouokou (For Seri 90’): N/R - The Real Betis midfielder came on late in the game. AP
“There’s obviously then some tricky ties and this is one of those groups where you’re looking and thinking ‘some of these are potentially trickier than just the rankings’. That’s always a danger.
“It’s intriguing isn’t it, because we’ve never played Iran. And then the States … I’ve met [US coach] Gregg [Berhalter] a lot recently, so we’ve had some good chats and he’s got them vastly improved.
“The third game is going to be a highly emotional game whoever it is. We all know where our thoughts are with Ukraine and we have to see whether they are even able to play or not.
“And of course if it’s one of the British teams, we’ve been through that in tournaments recently. So they become unique games, really. Form is totally out of the window.”
England have never faced another British nation in a World Cup finals match but do have recent tournament experience against Scotland and Wales.
They were held to a goalless draw by Steve Clarke’s side in last summer’s Euros at Wembley and beat Wales 2-1 at Euro 2016.
England 3 Senegal 0: in pictures
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Ollie Watkins, right, celebrates after he scoring England's first goal in their 3-0 friendly win against the Ivory Coast at Wembley Stadium on Tuesday, March 29, 2022. AP -
Ollie Watkins taps home for England. PA -
Watkins celebrates his goal. AP -
Raheem Sterling scores England's second goal. Reuters -
Serge Aurier of the Ivory Coast leaves the pitch after being sent off. Getty -
Defender Tyrone Mings jumps to head home the third goal. AFP -
Tyrone Mings celebrates with Declan Rice and Harry Kane. AFP -
Mings waves to supporters after the match. AFP -
Raheem Sterling scores for England. AP -
England manager Gareth Southgate on the touchline. PA
