Without a doubt, Kyle Walker has bided his time. The Manchester City right-back finally scored for his nation on his 77th cap, twelve years after his England debut. His calm finish just before halftime negated Oleksandr Zinchenko's opening goal for Ukraine and made sure England came away with something from a collective 6/10 performance.
Walker was the standout performer on the pitch, and Gareth Southgate found his pace on the defensive cover to be especially comforting given that he was up against the high-heeled Mykhailo Mudryk. Even after giving his opponent a leg up in footraces, he constantly shut the door in his face.
Walker's goal, which was assisted expertly by Harry Kane, temporarily quieted the nearly sold-out crowd that was emblazoned in blue, yellow, and Ukrainian fervour.
With four wins from their first four qualification games, England has already essentially qualified for the European Championship finals in Germany next summer. This draw wasn't terrible, especially considering that Italy was pushed to a 1-1 draw in North Macedonia. They played on the front foot, but simply did not contribute enough to win. When the final whistle came, there would be an outpouring of Ukrainian joy because the final third lacked cunning. Next up for Southgate and his team is the friendly matchup with Scotland on Tuesday in Glasgow.
Although it is difficult to estimate precisely, it is generally believed that there are roughly 250,000 Ukrainians living in Wroclaw, a Polish city with a population of about 640,000.
In other words, they are an essential component of society. From noon on, it was impossible to deny their excitement as they strolled through the charming old town and observed the visiting England supporters setting up their flags and settling down.
Although there were reminders of Ukraine's sorrow, the atmosphere was relaxed. Vladimir Putin was shown as Adolf Hitler in a mural with a swastika between his eyes and his hands restrained. "Killer" was written below, and "Nuremberg For Putin" was written to the side. Both before and during the game, the crowd cheered for their soldiers and sang the national anthem while holding aloft blue and yellow flags.
England sought to be in charge, and they quickly dominated possession. Serhiy Rebrov, the new manager of Ukraine, generally used a 4-4-2 out of possession but refrained from pressing or overcommitting. He hoped to gain victory by counterattack.
England was under pressure. With the ball, what might they do? For the majority of the first half, "Not much," was the response. Early on, Bukayo Saka had a shot blocked but it was thin gruel, while Jude Bellingham displayed a couple of great movements.
Under Rebrov, who took charge in June, there is a greater atmosphere in the Ukraine setup than there was at Wembley in March, when England triumphed with some ease. With victories over North Macedonia and Malta, Rebrov got off to a strong start, and the stadium was rocking when Zinchenko scored.
England were stretched as Viktor Tsyhankov freed the overlapping right-back, Yukhym Konoplya, thanks to the remarkable Heorhiy Sudakov's quick feet in the buildup. Every time someone in yellow performed even the tiniest thing well, the home audience would go wild. The decibel level suddenly increased. Konoplya turned around, and Zinchenko, who had been late, was there to guide them home. Behind the goal, the celebration was illuminated by a crimson flare.
Only James Maddison replaced Marcus Rashford on the left wing from the 7-0 demolition of North Macedonia at Old Trafford in June was the only unforced substitution made by Southgate.
England fought hard until Kane dropped deep and produced the equaliser with a beautiful diagonal shot over the top and inside Vitaliy Mykolenko for the advancing Walker.
After Zinchenko's goal, Jordan Henderson attempted to find Maddison when he could have shot. Maddison then encapsulated England's rising frustrations by getting a yellow card for a challenge on Illya Zabarnyi.
The equaliser was started by Kane's pass, Walker's initial touch being so accurate that he had time to enable the ball to bounce once, then twice, before he finished. Maddison took a heavy touch when a better one from a Bellingham pass would have allowed him to get through on goal.
Maddison gave a different perspective to the job on the left, drifting inside in quest of open spaces where Southgate has so many alternatives. Ben Chilwell could overlap, or Bellingham could perhaps bomb on, was the theory. Neither actually occurred. There were some beautiful passes and some poor touches by Madison.
At the beginning of the second half, England applied pressure, and Saka was only saved by the crossbar after Maddison connected with Kane, who then fed the winger. Saka made an inside cut, and his shot fizzed up and against the woodwork thanks to his impeccable technique. To the untrained eye, Heorhiy Bushchan, the custodian, appeared to have touched it.
Bellingham had waned after a promising start, so Southgate replaced them with Phil Foden and Rashford. The position in centre midfield that Foden desires was available. However, the switch did not assist England in creating a late sting.
