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Gareth Southgate was delighted with the way his England players overcame a tough Switzerland side and felt Conor Gallagher was a superstar in midfield.

England came from behind to sink Switzerland 2-1 at Wembley. The Swiss were undoubtedly the better team in the first half, taking the lead through Breel Embolo before twice striking the woodwork.

However, England rolled with the punches and levelled on the stroke of half time through Luke Shaw.

The Three Lions upped the tempo after the break, yet found clear-cut chances hard to come by against a determined and well organised Swiss rearguard.

But with 12 minutes to go, debutant Marc Guehi rose high from a corner before heading the ball onto the arm of a Swiss defender. After a brief VAR review England were awarded a penalty with Harry Kane snatching the late winner from the spot.

In doing do, Kane tied Bobby Charlton for second on England’s list of all-time goalscorers (49). Only Wayne Rooney (53) lays ahead of England’s centre-forward.

PLAYER RATINGS: Debutant steals the show as Man Utd star rectifies error in emphatic style, Kane ties legend

Southgate was delighted with the way his charges fought back to claim the win. And he picked out Crystal Palace star Gallagher for special praise.

“Really good test, we know they are a very good side and a great challenge for us,” he told Sky Sports. “We learned a lot about some new players and some inexperienced players in an international shirt.

“He (Gallagher) is infectious and he can set the tone for the rest of the team, you see that with his club and he presses with ambition. He goes and makes contract and turns a lot of the ball over.”

And the 51-year-old confessed that it has been tough to come up with the right combinations due to players withdrawing.

“To a degree, we are trying to work through the two games and manage the players. It has been a bizarre week with everything going on,” he added.

“We feel Mason Mount and Gallagher press well but can leave us vulnerable to the switch. The Swiss worked that out. We had an idea of what we wanted to do, we would have wanted Bukayo Saka to have a look at that.”

Southgate talks up Pickford

Jordan Pickford has been criticised by pundits in recent times after a number of errors.  And the boss was quick to back his under-fire keeper while hailing the solid work of his rearguard.

“Everybody is always highlighting Jordan Pickford but you saw in the firs half the quality he has,” he continued. “He was composed with the ball today, he made good decisions and did not risk in silly areas.

“We played out from the back well, Ben White and Marc Guehi were very good. Ben got caught a bit for the goal but apart from that to come in at late notice with John Stones feeling something, he and Marc should be pleased.”

Kane hails debutants; speaks on tying Charlton

Kane also spoke to the press, telling Sky Sports: “Tough game. A big year ahead and a chance for us to try different systems and formations to see how we get on.

“I felt it was a good performance but room for improvement but a good win to start the year.

“We rotated the squad, new faces getting debuts and these are the games you have to try stuff. There is not a lot of time between now and the World Cup.

“The new boys did great, really well. Marc Guehi got the penalty and Kyle Walker-Peters got the interception for the first goal. You want to start your England career with a win and thankfully we did that.”

On matching Bobby Charlton with his 49th England goal, Kane added: “You have to be ready for any chance at any moment.

“Penalties are a great way of getting on the scoresheet, I practice and work on them a lot.

“It is amazing company to be with, super proud to be doing that but we look forward to the next one. A big year ahead to get more caps and more goals.

“I will be ready for Tuesday [against Ivory Coast] but it is down to the manager.”

READ MORE: Harry Kane future comments leave unanswered questions, as he sets sights on England milestone

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