England beat Miami United FC 6-0 in a behind-closed-doors friendly in West Palm Beach on Thursday, and Ivan Toney completed a hat-trick in the non-traditional match format.
The game was played as two 25-minute halves; England scored once in the first period and poured in five goals in the second. Toney’s three strikes were the headline, while Liverpool’s Rio Ngumoha and Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri also found the net — notably both players are outside England’s final 26-man squad.
The scoreline left little doubt about England’s offensive rhythm. Miami threatened only briefly — Mathieu Ndongo’s effort struck the crossbar in the second half — while England’s midfield, led visibly by Jordan Henderson, pressed with an intensity described by one observer as “super aggressive.”
The match blurred the line between experiment and exam. England’s manager set a controlled stage: coaching staff from Miami were told they could “play in any shape” and test different game models, and England treated the exercise as a last, focused run-through before the tournament. At the same time, the home side’s intensity and the six-goal haul made the friendly feel like a semi-competitive dress rehearsal rather than a mere training kickabout.
Small moments underlined that dual purpose. The visiting coach did not address Miami’s players during the game, and afterwards the England coach moved across the pitch picking up towels and bottles left on the field — gestures one Miami official called “fantastic” and symptomatic of a professional, if informal, atmosphere.
For England the outing completed a clean pre-tournament sweep after earlier warm-ups: a 1-0 win over New Zealand and a 3-0 victory against Costa Rica. The West Palm Beach session is the last stop before the squad heads on to their tournament base and their opening match; England are due to fly to Kansas City ahead of their World Cup opener against Croatia on Wednesday 17 June.
Still, the match leaves an open question for England’s selectors and supporters. Reports from the scene identified the opponent variously as Miami United FC and as Miami FC of the USL Championship, a discrepancy that matters when assessing how stern a test this was. A six-goal shutout and Toney’s treble look impressive on the scoresheet; how much they teach about England’s readiness depends on how strong the opposition actually was.
What is undisputed is immediate: Toney’s hat-trick and the clean sheet give England momentum. The definitive appraisal arrives in Kansas City on Wednesday 17 June, when the group stage begins and the informal allowances of a closed-door friendly will be replaced by the full measure of tournament scrutiny.
