Ben Chilwell reflects on ending long wait for England goal

Chelsea's Ben Chilwell has opened up on ending his long wait for a first international goal three years into his senior England career.

Chilwell is a fairly regular goalscorer for the Blues but was forced to wait until Saturday evening's World Cup qualifier in Andorra to net his first in the Three Lions shirt having made his debut in September 2018.

The left-back popped up in the opposition penalty area in the 19th minute to open the scoring in the 5-0 thrashing, firing home from Jadon Sancho's cute pass. However, his three-year wait had an anxious climax after the flag was raised, before VAR finally adjudged Sancho to have been onside when he provided the assist.

Speaking to Chelsea's official website, the 24-year-old said: "I was just hoping that it got overturned. I asked Sanch [Sancho] if he thought he was offside and he said he thought he was on so I was hoping that it would get overturned and thankfully it was.

"It’s amazing. I’ve been in the squad for three or so years now so to get that first goal was special. Although I waited a few minutes to celebrate, it’s an amazing feeling and I’m over the moon with it."

The defender was also asked about his difficult start to the season, having lost his starting place at club level due to Marcos Alonso's impressive form after failing to play a single minute for England at Euro 2020.

"These things happen in football," Chilwell added. "Everyone has periods in their career where things don’t go their way and you just have to make sure that you’re training hard and ready when that opportunity comes to take it and show that you should be playing.

"It’s very proud every time you put the shirt on and I just wanted to get on the pitch and give the gaffer a bit of a headache for the future games. Just playing for England is such a special feeling and to get that goal and a good win was nice."