England v Croatia player ratings: Kalvin Phillips 8, Raheem Sterling 7; Luka Modric 6, Mateo Kovacic 5

Gareth Southgate's team avenge 2018 World Cup semi-final defeat in their Euro 2020 opener at Wembley

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  ENGLND PLAYER RATINGS: Jordan Pickford - 6. Little to do early on in the heat but listen to the hugely vocal home fans, then he had to steady his players as Croatia took more share of possession. Looked to play the ball long almost all the time – even though it often came back. Reuters

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  Kyle Walker - 7. Saw a lot of the ball from Foden in front when his club teammate might have been better taking a Croatia full-back on. Did well in second half and communicated effectively with Pickford and kept Perisic quiet on the left. AP

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  John Stones - 7. Didn’t have to mark a true centre-forward, but comfortable alongside Mings in the one position where England have doubts given Harry Maguire’s injury. Suffered cramp later on in the searing heat. AP

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  Tyrone Mings - 7. Assured in first half and tried to rally the players as Croatia found more success with Modric getting more of the ball in the middle halfway through the first half. Headed a 74th minute cross back to set up Sterling. PA

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  Kieran Trippier - 7. Started at left back rather than right where he usually plays. Frustrated when he couldn’t connect with a 43rd minute free-kick. Did well. AFP

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  Kalvin Phillips - 8. The Leeds midfielder started well and saw an eighth minute shot through a crowded area saved as England dominated early on. Played in a more advanced role than usual and often pushed up behind Kane. Set up Sterling for the opener with a sublime pass. Passed sideways and forwards and put his body in the way of opponents. EPA

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  Declan Rice - 6. Wasn’t the stand out that his midfield foil Phillips was, but efficient and strong in a difficult position against Modric, Kovacic et al. And in very difficult positions too. Phillips helped him. Reuters

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  Mason Mount - 7. Bright performance as he pressured the Croats and restricted the dominance of their elite midfielders. Moved right when Kane went off. Returned for a lap of honour when England’s players received an ovation. There’s a togetherness in this England team. EPA

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  Raheem Sterling - 7. A couple of half openings at the start for England’s most experienced player, then forced a shot in to give England the lead – his first major tournament goal. Get him the ball and he’s dangerous. Slashed a 74th minute shot wide after being set up by Mings and looked sharper than in recent weeks for Manchester City. AFP

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  Phil Foden - 7. Struck the inside of the post with a curling shot after four minutes as England started as brightly as the weather. Key player. Harsh yellow card and taken off soon after. Getty

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  Harry Kane - 6. Played deeper than expected and struggled to get into the game. Brozovic had the measure of him. Smashed the post with his ribs as he came close to scoring. Not his best day but the key was that his team won an opening game in the European championship for the first time in nine tournaments. EPA

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  SUBS: Marcus Rashford - 6. Came on to an ovation and went right, then as the centre forward after Kane went off. Reuters

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  Jude Bellingham - N/A. Became the first 17-year-old to play for England at a tournament and the youngest player to appear at a European championship when he replaced Kane after 82. Dominic Calvert Lewin - N/A. Late on a Gareth Southgate used a third substitute in the heat. EPA

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  CROATIA RATINGS: Dominik Livakovic - 6. Got a hand to the opening goal but couldn’t have done much more as Sterling struck home from close range. Not helped by a defence that looked lost in moments. PA

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  Sime Vrsaljko - 6. Stretched the play going forward and looked comfortable in the air. Defensively there has to be better communication with Caleta-Car with too many balls allowed in behind the channels. AFP

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  Duje Caleta-Car - 5. A strong tackle on Sterling prevented what looked to be a golden opportunity to open the scoring but the centre-back looked uncomfortable dealing with balls over the top. AFP

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  Domagoj Vida - 5. A disorganised display overall from the Croatia defence. While Vida didn’t make any notable mistakes, the Besiktas defender has to do more to help out his less experienced partner. EPA

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  Josko Gvardiol - 6. Settled down after Phil Foden provided an early scare with a strike that rattled the post. The left-back tried to be positive with runs up the left flank but there was little to aim for inside the England box. EPA

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  Marcelo Brozovic - 5. Sloppy on the ball at times. The midfielder wasn’t at the races today with a number of rash decisions that only invited more pressure onto his side. AP

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  Luka Modric - 6. A quiet game by Modric’s standards. The Real Madrid midfielder wasn’t helped by his team's lackadaisical movement as Croatia attacks looked to be played in the tempo of a pre-season friendly. AFP

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  Mateo Kovacic - 5. Replacing Ivan Rakitic is never going to be easy but Kovacic has to do much more going forward. Only his safest passes looked to find the target while the Chelsea man didn’t seem to link well with Luka Modric. EPA

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  Andrej Kramaric - 5. Non-existent. A questionable decision to play Kramaric from the flank after the forward scored 18 goals when starting from central positions for Hoffenheim last season. Getty

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  Ante Rebic - 5. Service was lacking for the AC Milan hitman as Croatia could rarely get a hold of the ball. A scuffed effort wide of the post summed up his day at Wembley. Getty

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  Ivan Perisic - 5. Looked unthreatening throughout the game. The 32-year-old couldn’t get the better of Kyle Walker, often looking like a player who was there to make up the numbers. A player of his quality has to do much better. EPA

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  SUBS Josip Brekalo (Kramaric, 70) - 6. The Wolfsburg winger provided more pace out wide but he was introduced at a time when the orchestra were out of rhythm. Getty

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  Nikola Vlasic (Brozovic, 70) - 6. On for Brozovic who didn’t look far away from picking up a second yellow card. AP

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  Bruno Petkovic (Rebic, 79) - N/A.-The target-man faced the same problems as the man he replaced. Isolated. Mario Pasalic (Kovacic, 85) - N/A . On for a final roll of the dice but it was too little too late. Croatia didn’t look like they had a plan for this game. EPA

England got their Euro 2020 campaign off to a victorious start as they battled their way to a 1-0 win over Croatia at Wembley on Sunday.

Gareth Southgate's team avenged their 2018 World Cup semi-final defeat to Croatia after Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling scored in the 57th minute. It was Sterling's first goal at a major tournament.

Sterling justified Southgate's decision to keep his faith in him by scoring at a balmy Wembley.

"I always said if I played at Wembley in a major tournament, I'm scoring. I had to score in my back garden and delighted to do that," Sterling said.

England thus won their opening game at a European Championship for the first time in 10 attempts.

Player ratings from the match can be seen in the picture gallery above. To view the next image, click on the arrows or swipe if on a mobile device.