It wasn’t pretty, but England got the job done.
The Three Lions picked up a 1-0 win over Lithuania in the cold, rainy evening in Vilnus, Lithuania, with Harry Kane’s first half penalty kick serving as the difference between the two sides.
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15 - Harry Kane has scored 15 goals in his last 10 matches in all competitions for club and country. Flourishing. pic.twitter.com/umy4kBorGm
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 8, 2017
England controlled the match with 72 percent possession, had 10 corners and took 12 shots, but just four were on target.
With the win, England confirms their place atop Group F.
Here’s a look at some other action around UEFA World Cup qualifying:
Poland qualifies for the World Cup
After missing the last two World Cups, Poland is returning to the world stage.
Robert Lewandowski scored the go-ahead goal in the 86th minute as Poland defeated Montenegro, 4-2 to win Group E and qualify for the World Cup next year in Russia. Lewandowski’s goal was his UEFA-leading 16th of the campaign, and tied him for the most in the world during World Cup qualifying.
17 goals in his last 11 games for Poland. Lewandowski is on a different planet! #POLMNE pic.twitter.com/a069pwxESa
— Cristian Nyari (@Cnyari) October 8, 2017
#LewanGOALski ⚽️
— European Qualifiers (@EuroQualifiers) October 8, 2017
Record! Robert Lewandowski becomes the first player ever to score 16 goals in a major European qualifying campaign. 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/K90NtkhYkp
Scotland eliminated on final day
It was another rough night for the Tartan Army.
The Scotland National Team led in the first half but couldn’t hold on, and despite battling back in the second half, settled for a 2-2 draw at Slovenia, eliminating Scotland from the World Cup while Slovakia - which beat Malta 3-0 - will advance to the World Cup qualifying playoffs.
Leigh Griffiths scored the opener but he was cancelled out by goals from Roman Bezjak, who scored twice in the second half. Robert Snodgrass equalized in the 88th minute but it was too late for Scotland, which now hasn’t been to the World Cup since 1998.