Tuchel debut: England wins 2-0 in World Cup qualifier

London. Thomas Tuchel celebrated a successful debut as coach of the England national football team. England defeated Albania 2-0 (1-0) in a World Cup qualifier. 18-year-old Myles Lewis-Skelly (20th minute) of Arsenal FC and Bayern Munich star Harry Kane (77th minute) fired the Three Lions to a deserved home victory at London's Wembley Stadium.

Before kickoff, the fans welcomed the German coach with a large banner reading "Welcome to the home of football, Thomas." The 51-year-old had announced his intention to play exciting football with his team. However, the 82,378 fans at Wembley didn't initially get to see that.

England controlled the match from the start, but rarely created clear-cut chances against an extremely defensive Albanian side. Lewis-Skelly, one of two international debutants in the starting lineup alongside Newcastle's Dan Burn, took advantage of the first good opportunity after an assist from Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham. Albania had nothing to offer up front. England captain Kane sealed the victory after a Declan Rice cross.

Superstar Robert Lewandowski fired the Polish national team to a late victory in their first Group G qualifying match against Lithuania. The FC Barcelona striker scored the winner in the 81st minute in Warsaw.

RND/dpa