LONDON — An 86th-minute header from center-back Chris Smalling spared England’s blushes as it squeezed past 10-man Portugal 1-0 at Wembley Thursday in its final Euro 2016 warm-up game.
While Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo was rested following his involvement in Real Madrid’s Champions League final victory over Atletico Madrid last weekend, England manager Roy Hodgson was effectively able to name a full-strength line-up.
But with his side’s Group B opener against Russia in Marseille just nine days away, it took Smalling’s first international goal to secure victory after the host had toiled badly despite playing against 10 men following the 35th-minute dismissal of Bruno Alves.
A bullish Hodgson told ITV: “I’m not prepared to accept that we didn’t play well. We looked good, we had composure throughout the game and it would have been better to play against 11.”
There was little for Portugal’s supporters to cheer on a chilly night in west London as their team lost to England for the first time in six games, but coach Fernando Santos will have Ronaldo back in his ranks for their final warm-up match against Estonia in Lisbon on June 8.
England’s fans have been clamoring for Wayne Rooney, Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy to be aligned together in attack, but although Hodgson selected the trio in the same team for the first time, Kane and Vardy took up wide positions, with Rooney in the center.
Both managers made a raft of changes in the second half, but while the introduction of Jack Wilshere in place of James Milner added fluency to the hosts’ passing, England continued to labor in attack.
Portugal substitute Ricardo Quaresma gave England a scare by curling a shot just wide, but with four minutes remaining Raheem Sterling crossed from the left for Smalling to head in the winner.
Giggs to leave United
Ryan Giggs will leave Manchester United in the close season to explore opportunities in management away from the club, Sky Sports reported Friday, citing sources.
Giggs has been at United for 29 years and served as interim player-manager when David Moyes was sacked in 2014 and as an assistant coach under Louis van Gaal.
Former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, who was announced as Van Gaal’s replacement last week, is bringing his own management team to Old Trafford with his long-time assistant Rui Faria set to take up the role that Giggs has filled.
Aubameyang best player
Borussia Dortmund’s Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been voted Bundesliga Player of the Year by the German player’s union (VDV).
The 26-year-old, who got 19.7 percent of the vote, finished ahead of Bayern Munich’s Poland forward Robert Lewandowski (19.5) — the league’s top scorer with 30 goals.
Aubameyang’s teammate Henrikh Mkhitaryan (12.6), who also plays in midfield for Armenia, came third, the VDV said on its website (www.spielergewerkschaft.de).
Aubameyang, who was named African Footballer of the Year in January, scored 25 goals for Dortmund in the league last season, helping his side finish runners-up to Bayern.
Aubameyang, Lewandowski and Mkhitaryan were also included in the Bundesliga team of the season. — Agencies
