England boss Gareth Southgate felt there were a number of “very good” performances from his side despite falling to defeat against Brazil on Saturday.
Real Madrid-bound Endrick scored the only goal of the game after picking up the rebound on Vinicius Junior’s saved shot in the second half at Wembley.
Both teams had 14 shots on goal, although the visitors created seven big chances on the night to the host’s one. The manager admitted the Three Lions lacked the ruthlessness that Brazil brought to the contest.
“There were lots of very good performances,” Southgate told Channel 4 after the final whistle. “It is a top level game and we have controlled long parts of it. We had as many attempts as them on goal but in the end it is that ruthless moment that decides the game.
“We’ve had a lot of players go on, a couple of debuts and some really important individual performances for us.”
Southgate singled out Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon for praise after the 23-year-old made his senior debut for the England national team.
“Anthony was excellent both sides of his game,” he said. “With 15 minutes to go there were lots of changes and I think at the point the crowd were really pleased with the performance.
“Of course when you lose the game it turns negative but we have to keep the context with that.”
He added: “We played from the back really well. I am happy with a lot of that performance.”
England host Belgium on Tuesday in their second friendly of the international break.
