As the World Cup draws ever closer, the teams are putting their squads through their final paces with a series of friendlies before the competition gets under way on June 12.

Last night saw England and World Cup opponents Italy both held to draws, while Arjen Robben inspired Holland to a 2-0 win over Wales.

 

England 2 – 2 Ecuador

Raheem Sterling and Antonio Valencia were sent off as England drew their ill-tempered World Cup warm-up against Ecuador in the Miami heat.

In the humid Floridian climate, Enner Valencia headed Ecuador in front after some sloppy defending by Chris Smalling and Luke Shaw.

Wayne Rooney equalised and Rickie Lambert brilliantly put England ahead, but Roy Hodgson had to settle for a 2-2 draw thanks to Michael Arroyo’s long-range strike.

Despite the dismissal of Sterling, there were some positives to take from the match.

Ross Barkley, making his first England start, performed superbly in the No10 role – most notably in setting up Lambert’s goal.

Netherlands 2 – 0 Wales

Robin van Persie sparked fresh concerns over his fitness after playing just 45 minutes of the Netherlands’ laboured 2-0 friendly win over stubborn Wales in Amsterdam.

Robben had already gone close twice before eventually opening the scoring after 32 minutes, finishing emphatically on the rebound after Wayne Hennessey had saved with his feet from Van Persie.

The Netherlands doubled their lead after 76 minutes when Robben broke clear down the right and pulled the ball back for Lens, who could not miss from close range.

Italy 1 – 1 Luxembourg

European minnows Luxembourg denied Italy their first win in seven games with a late equaliser in Perugia.

Claudio Marchisio’s ninth-minute goal had put the hosts in front and Italy should have extended their lead but were twice denied by the woodwork in the second half.

Maxine Chanot pulled Luxembourg level with five minutes remaining when he nodded past a helpless Gianluigi Buffon in the Italy goal.