England's striker Marcus Rashford celebrates scoring England's second goal during the World Cup 2018 qualification football match between England and Slovakia at Wembley Stadium in London on September 4, 2017.
PHOTO: AFP
The 19-year-old was at fault as Stanislav Lobotka stunned a two-thirds full Wembley to give Slovakia a third-minute lead, but set up the equaliser for Eric Dier and then netted a sumptuous 20-yard winner in the second half.
Victory sent England five points clear of Slovakia at the Group F summit and means Gareth Southgate's side need just two points from their last two games against Slovenia and Lithuania to seal qualification.
"To come from behind against a side with very good footballers, particularly in midfield, we had to show character," said Southgate. "Marcus Rashford showed, like the rest of the team, great character. He made the mistake for their goal, but he kept persevering."
England have endured turmoil since edging Slovakia 1-0 in their opening game a year ago, after which Sam Allardyce was felled by a newspaper sting operation and was replace by Southgate, but though they remain a work in progress, Russia now beckons.
Martial urges teammates to keep feet on ground
For all their neat passing and intelligent movement, Jan Kozak's Slovakia find themselves in a perilous position in the group, with both Slovenia and Scotland just a point behind them.
"I'm sorry about the result, but the opposition were better, especially in the second half," said Kozak. "Before the double-header against Slovenia and England, we wanted to have the situation in our own hands before the last two games and we still have the situation in our own hands."
While the group winners will qualify automatically, a two-legged play-off awaits the team who finish second.
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