Jake Livermore pleased with England's resilience
Jake Livermore says bouncing back with an injury-time equaliser in Scotland proves the strength of character in the England squad.
Albion’s central midfielder, who impressed in his first competitive game for the Three Lions, reckons the team is heading in the right direction under Gareth Southgate.
Southgate played the 27-year-old alongside Tottenham’s Eric Dier in midfield on Saturday, but it was Livermore who stood out in a poor first half.
He made more successful passes and had more touches than any other player on the pitch.
In the second half, he hit the post with a deflected shot, and was unlucky to give away one of the free-kicks Leigh Griffiths curled in when he slipped on the turf.
Those goals in the 87th and 90th minutes turned the game on its head after England substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain had opened the scoring with 20 minutes to go.
But captain Harry Kane popped up at the back post in the third minute of injury time to keep England two points clear at the top of Group F and unbeaten in World Cup qualifying.
“To come to a difficult place like this and with two bits of brilliance from them, a point is still a commanding result for us,” said Livermore. “We are still top of the table.
“On a personal level, it’s nice to play my first competitive game.
“We feel we’re going in the right direction. To concede two goals late on and come back shows the character we’ve got. The manager breeds confidence and calmness across the pitch.”
Livermore’s sentiments were echoed by Southgate, who told the BBC: “I’ve seen teams fold in those moments. We showed the mentality shift we needed.”
James Morrison started for Scotland but was forced off at half-time with a knock to his knee.
Albion players were also in action for Northern Ireland, who scored a crucial late winner against Azerbaijan in Baku.
Jonny Evans and Chris Brunt played the full 90 minutes, although Gareth McAuley limped off after 25 minutes with a recurrence of his thigh injury.
Michael O’Neill’s men are now four points clear in second place of Group C with a play-off place very much on the cards.
“This is the first time I have felt bad for the other team because I thought they were excellent,” said Evans.
