Football | Ireland thrashed by England at Wembley

The Republic of Ireland have been beaten 5-0 by England in the UEFA Nations League at Wembley Stadium.

After a scoreless first half in which Evan Ferguson was controversially denied a penalty, Ireland fell apart after Liam Scales was shown a second yellow for conceding a penalty in the 51st minute, conceding three goals in six chaotic minutes in London.

Harry Kane converted the spot kick, with Anthony Gordon and Conor Gallagher quickly adding to the hosts' lead in interim manager Lee Carsley's last game in charge to leave the Boys in Green stunned in the English capital.

Substitutes Jarrod Bowen (76) and Taylor Harwood-Bellis (79) added the gloss for England to confirm their promotion back to League A. After a win over Finland and a promising first half, it was a bitterly disappointing second-half performance from Heimir Hallgrímsson's men.

Elsewhere in Group 2, Greece secured second place in the group with a 2-0 away victory against Finland.

Ireland's potential Nations League relegation play-off opponents are Slovakia, Armenia, Northern Ireland, Romania, Kosovo, Belarus or Bulgaria.

Match report

Hallgrímsson made a number of changes to the team which beat Finland in Dublin, with Mark McGuinness coming in at centre back, and Dara O'Shea replacing Matt Doherty at right back. Nathan Collins stepped into midfield to fill in for the injured Jason Knight, with Jayson Molumby also earning a start.

Mikey Johnston dropped to the bench after his match-winning assist at the Aviva, with Festy Ebosele and Sammy Szmodics supporting Evan Ferguson in attack.

Carsley, who had something of an injury crisis on his hands, restored captain Kane to the starting lineup after dropping the Bayern Munich striker against Greece. Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall started at full back, with Kyle Walker partnering Marc Guehi in the middle of the English defence. Conor Gallagher and Curtis Jones started in midfield, with Jude Bellingham playing a little further forward. Noni Madueke and Anthony Gordon flanked lone striker Kane.

Predictably, each country's supporters booed the other's anthem in a hostile atmosphere inside Wembley before kick-off.

England made a bright start, with Madueke threatening down Ireland's left early on. In the fourth minute, Caoimhín Kelleher parried the Chelsea winger's low cross, with Jones's powerful rebound from outside the area deflected behind for a corner.

Walker got free from the resulting set piece but couldn't direct his header on target.

Ireland were organised and determined, making life hard for the home side, who boasted 75% possession in the first half.

Ebosele impressed once again, working tirelessly defensively and carrying the ball down the wing whenever the opportunity arose.

The Boys in Green should have had a penalty when Guehi pulled Ferguson's jersey for a prolonged period inside the box, but the referee was unmoved despite the Irish protests.

Ireland had another penalty shout when Walker clumsily tried to head the ball back to Jordan Pickford, colliding with Szmodics in the process.

A strong Liam Scales tackle on Kane delighted the away fans. The Celtic defender was also booked needlessly for kicking the ball away.

That yellow proved costly, with Scales shown his second card for tripping Bellingham in the box after a fine pass from Kane. The England striker dispatched his penalty with aplomb, and Gordon doubled England's lead moments later, sweeping home Livramento's cross from close range.

Gallagher was in the right place at the right time to finish off Guehi's near-post header two minutes later to put the home side out of touch. In the blink of an eye, Ireland were 3-0 down.

Bowen added a classy fourth just after his introduction, curling home a left-footed finish from a well-worked free kick. Debutant Harwood-Bellis headed in England's fifth to cap off a memorable night for the Southampton defender.

Andrew Moran was introduced for his first competitive cap in the 76th minute, 10 minutes after Finn Azaz, Troy Parrott and Ryan Manning had come off the bench. There was also a late cameo for Kasey McAteer on a difficult night for Ireland.

England: Jordan Pickford, Tino Livramento, Lewis Hall, Kyle Walker (Taylor Harwood-Bellis 62), Marc Guéhi, Conor Gallagher (Dominic Solanke 75), Curtis Jones (Angel Gomes 79), Noni Madueke (Jarrod Bowen 75), Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon (Morgan Rogers 75), Harry Kane (C).

Republic of Ireland: Caoimhín Kelleher; Dara O'Shea, Liam Scales, Nathan Collins (C), Mark McGuinness; Dara O'Shea, Callum O'Dowda (Finn Azaz 66), Josh Cullen (Andrew Moran 76), Jayson Molumby; Festy Ebosele (Ryan Manning 66), Sammie Szmodics (Kasey McAteer 86), Evan Ferguson (Troy Parrott 66).