Solid England searching for World Cup identity

Soccer Football - International Friendly - England vs Italy - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - March 27, 2018 England manager Gareth Southgate and Lewis Cook after the match REUTERS/Darren Staples

LONDON (Reuters) - But for a contentious late VAR decision, England manager Gareth Southgate would have been planning his next World Cup steps on the tail of back-to-back wins over two major footballing powers, draws against two more and a run of six successive clean sheets.

Lorenzo Insigne's penalty to earn Italy a 1-1 draw at Wembley skewed those stats, but not the underlying theme - namely that England are proving adept at keeping teams out, though still struggle with their own penetration.