England U21 3 Kazakhstan U21 0: Chelsea midfielder stars as England cruise to win

Ruben Loftus-Cheek scored the first of England U21s' three goals

Ruben Loftus-Cheek took star billing as England breezed past Kazakhstan to make it two wins from two in Euro 2017 qualifying.

 

The Chelsea teenager opened the scoring in the 53rd minute and caught the eye as Norwich winger Nathan Redmond and Arsenal striker Chuba Akpom also netted.

The Young Lions had to be patient following a goalless first half in which they wasted several good chances, but they never looked troubled once 19-year-old Loftus-Cheek struck.

England boss Gareth Southgate said: "Ruben's a very powerful player. We like him in the No10 role.

"It's early stages for him. We have to look after him and make sure he can still finish games as strongly as he can. But he should be very pleased with what he has done and hopefully he can progress over the next few weeks with his club."

 

England dominated the early stages and in the 12th minute Akpom, on loan from the Gunners to Hull, thudded a shot against the woodwork following an excellent through-ball from Loftus-Cheek.

But they could not force a breakthrough and they grew more frustrated in the 34th minute when Akpom headed over wastefully from a Ward-Prowse corner.

England led eight minutes into the second half as Loftus-Cheek blasted them ahead.

He collected a knock-down by Eric Dier from a Ward-Prowse free-kick and rifled a shot high past Pavlov.

 

Norwich's Nathan Redmond celebrates his goal

Nathan Redmond saw a shot deflected wide before Redmond doubled England's lead in the 69th minute.

He collected a fantastic 60-yard pass from goalkeeper Jordan Pickford before darting in-field and beating Pavlov with a low shot.

Loftus-Cheek hit the bar with a header in a scramble before Akpom completed the scoring with the last kick of the game in the 93rd minute.

 

He scored from close range from substitute Dominic Iorfa's cross.

Southgate added: "When we had as much of the ball as we had the opposition couldn't keep running, they are going to tire and they are going to make mistakes.

"With the quality of players we've got we believe in that style of play and the rewards came later on in the game."