England 2-1 Croatia: 5 takeaways | UEFA Nations League 2018-19

#1 England wins whilst playing a possession game

Harry Kane scored the winning goal for England

It is so easy to label England's World Cup campaign as sheer dumb luck, but it clearly is not the case as England showed today. They played possession football, which is unlike them. For a team who always preferred physical football and long passes, they made crisp short passes, and kept the ball.

England pushed hard for the opening goal in the first half, but they weren't successful. They were high on confidence from seeing a lot of the ball in the opposition half. They also won back possession immediately after losing it.

After conceding a goal in the second half, England was down on confidence, but they still did not give up hope. They continued to hit the wings and try to play crosses in. Fresh legs from Dele Alli, Jadon Sancho, and Jesse Lingard pushed even harder for the equaliser. In the 74th minute, England took the lead via a throw-in which was pushed in by Lingard.

But a draw could not save them from being relegated, and they needed one more. They continued to pour numbers forward and keep the ball with them. The free-kick taken beat the Croatian defense, and a goal was served on a platter for Harry Kane to score.

England won late in the day, and how? No long passes, no physical football, no hard tackles, only short passes - hitting the wings, pass and move, and keeping the ball.

The nation who once defied the idea of possession football when Pep Guardiola took charge of Manchester City, plays with the same idea today. And for their own good, they realised the benefits of the idea.