Marcus Rashford’s brilliant double helped England reach the knockout phase as group winners and brought Wales’ first World Cup appearance since 1958 to an end.
Welsh hopes of progressing were hanging by a thread heading into a Group B finale in which Gareth Southgate’s side only needed to avoid a four-goal defeat to progress to the last 16.
The 104th meeting of the old foes was the first to be played at a World Cup and England comprehensively won 3-0 as Phil Foden scored either side of Rashford’s fine goals.
The reward is a last-16 meeting with Senegal on Sunday, by which point Robert Page’s side will have long since left Qatar after their first appearance on the world stage in 64 years ended in frustration.
"It's a great feeling," said England's man-of-the match Rashford. "Moments like this, this is what I play football for.
"The biggest moments, the best moments. I'm happy we are going through to the next round of the tournament because I have massive ambitions for this team and I think we can play even better than we did today.
"We were a little bit disappointed after the USA result. Thought we could've played a lot better, and it was important to have a good performance the next game. We defended brilliantly in the first half and it was just about killing the game off early and taking the chances.
"Half-time the manager said we've played well but we need more shots on goal – I think we only had two or three. We wanted to work the keeper more and get into dangerous positions, which I thought we were doing in the first half and in the second half we made them count."
Chesney Hawkes’ surprising half-time appearance was the most entertaining moment of the evening until the 50th minute, when Rashford stepped up to score a stupendous free-kick.
But it was not to be his one and only goal in Al Rayyan.
Foden turned home a fine Harry Kane cross within two minutes of the opener, before Rashford ended a mazy run by finishing through back-up goalkeeper Danny Ward’s legs.
The 25-year-old, making his first England start since June 2021, left to a standing ovation when he was substituted late on.
England were quickest out of the blocks and would have gone ahead inside 10 minutes had it not been for Ward’s quick thinking.
Kane’s smart, defence-splitting ball put Rashford through, only for the goalkeeper – in for suspended Wayne Hennessey – to smother the attempt having dashed off his line.
Foden drove wide and Rashford saw a fizzing drive headed away by Neco Williams, who was left with a suspected concussion and was eventually replaced.
Connor Roberts came into a defence that was nearly undone by a superb free-flowing move soon after, only for Foden to lash off target at the end of it.
Brennan Johnson replaced Wales captain Gareth Bale at the break, but their hopes of a first win against England since 1984 were quickly extinguished.
Joe Rodon was adjudged to have fouled Foden and Rashford took the resulting free-kick from 24 yards, unleashing a sensational effort that beat Ward and found the back of the net in the 50th minute.
Within two minutes England were celebrating again.
Rashford pressed Ben Davies on the right flank and the ball ricocheted forward to Kane, who sent a low driven cross to the far post where Foden coolly passed home.
Rashford then capped a fine night for the Three Lions, with a fine run showing good footwork and composure before sending a fierce strike through Ward’s legs for England’s 100th goal at World Cup finals tournaments.
England fans chanted Southgate’s name just days after boos greeted the final whistle against the USA, and John Stones went close in stoppage-time to adding gloss to an emphatic win.
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Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2 (Benzema 13', Kroos 28')
Barcelona 1 (Mingueza 60')
Red card: Casemiro (Real Madrid)
Structural%20weaknesses%20facing%20Israel%20economy
%3Cp%3E1.%20Labour%20productivity%20is%20lower%20than%20the%20average%20of%20the%20developed%20economies%2C%20particularly%20in%20the%20non-tradable%20industries.%3Cbr%3E2.%20The%20low%20level%20of%20basic%20skills%20among%20workers%20and%20the%20high%20level%20of%20inequality%20between%20those%20with%20various%20skills.%3Cbr%3E3.%20Low%20employment%20rates%2C%20particularly%20among%20Arab%20women%20and%20Ultra-Othodox%20Jewish%20men.%3Cbr%3E4.%20A%20lack%20of%20basic%20knowledge%20required%20for%20integration%20into%20the%20labour%20force%2C%20due%20to%20the%20lack%20of%20core%20curriculum%20studies%20in%20schools%20for%20Ultra-Othodox%20Jews.%3Cbr%3E5.%20A%20need%20to%20upgrade%20and%20expand%20physical%20infrastructure%2C%20particularly%20mass%20transit%20infrastructure.%3Cbr%3E6.%20The%20poverty%20rate%20at%20more%20than%20double%20the%20OECD%20average.%3Cbr%3E7.%20Population%20growth%20of%20about%202%20per%20cent%20per%20year%2C%20compared%20to%200.6%20per%20cent%20OECD%20average%20posing%20challenge%20for%20fiscal%20policy%20and%20underpinning%20pressure%20on%20education%2C%20health%20care%2C%20welfare%20housing%20and%20physical%20infrastructure%2C%20which%20will%20increase%20in%20the%20coming%20years.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
MATCH INFO
Europa League final
Marseille 0
Atletico Madrid 3
Greizmann (21', 49'), Gabi (89')
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
