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North Macedonia vs England LIVE: Euro 2024 qualifier result and reaction as Three Lions held to draw

North Macedonia 1-1 England: The Three Lions end their qualifying campaign unbeaten

Michael Jones
Monday 20 November 2023 23:03 GMT
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Southgate - 'Performance is the priority' against 'wounded' North Macedonia

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England were held to a drew in their final Euro 2024 qualifying fixture after another sluggish performance against North Macedonia. It was a frustrating night for the Three Lions who desperately hoped for an improved performance after they edged past Malta 2-0 on Friday.

They started well enough and had a bit of zip and tempo back in their passing which was evidently missing last week. Declan Rice hit the woodwork after just 15 minutes but the hosts grew in confidence. Rico Lewis, making his debut for the senior team, was a bright spark but a stray hand when clearing an aerial ball out of his own box forced a VAR check and North Macedonia won a penalty - Enis Bardhi slotting it past Jordan Pickford on the rebound after the goalkeeper initially saved it.

England went into the break behind but came out strongly once again. Jack Grealish thought he had an equaliser only for it to be ruled out for offside. Harry Kane’s introduction into proceedings resulted in an own goal going against the hosts but the Three Lions were unable to press their advantage and claim the win.

Relive the action from this Euro 2024 qualifier below:

Early team news and predicted line-ups

Gareth Southgate has had to deal with a host of injuries in this camp with Jude Bellingham, James Maddison, Levi Colwill, Callum Wilson and Lewis Dunk all pulling out, while Kalvin Phillips was unavailable for personal reasons.

Kieran Tripper has since also departed the squad due to a personal matter, Jarrod Bowen is injured, while Marcus Rashford might not be risked on Monday after being substituted following a collision with Trent Alexander-Arnold in the game against Malta.

North Macedonia head coach Blagoja Milevski, meanwhile, may look to rotate his team following their defeat against Italy, with Jani Atanasov - scorer of a brace off the bench against Italy - potentially in line for a start.

Predicted line-ups

North Macedonia XI: Dimitrievski, Ashkovski, Serafimov, Musliu, Dimoski, Atanasov, Elezi, Alioski, Ristovski, Bardhi, Elmas.

England XI: Pickford; Walker, Konsa, Maguire, Lewis; Alexander-Arnold, Rice, Gallagher; Grealish, Kane, Saka.

Mike Jones20 November 2023 17:55

How to watch North Macedonia vs England

North Macedonia vs England is due to kick off at 7.45pm GMT tonight, Monday 20 November, at the National Arena Tose Proeski in Skopje.

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on Channel 4, with coverage on the channel from 7pm GMT. A live stream will be available via the Channel 4 website and app.

If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch the event, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help and includes deals on VPNs in the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider.

Mike Jones20 November 2023 17:50

North Macedonia vs England

Hello and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of tonight’s Euro 2024 qualifier as England take on North Macedonia in the final qualifying match of their campaign.

The Three Lions have already secured a spot in Germany for next summer’s tournament and Friday night’s victory over Malta ensured they will finish top of Group C.

The team’s performance during that 2-0 victory was suspect though and at times they were challenged by a side that haven’t won a match during this qualifying run.

Gareth Southgate will be hoping his players can round out 2023 in style with another victory tonight but more importantly a performance the fans can get behind which will give England some momentum heading into the new year.

We’ll have all the team news, updates and match action throughout the evening so stick around as we build up to kick off at 7.45pm.

Mike Jones20 November 2023 17:45

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