Two Blues were in international action on Friday night, with both Jordan Pickford and Vitalii Mykolenko featuring as England and Ukraine picked up important victories in qualifiers for the 2024 UEFA European Championships.

Pickford started for England against Malta in the Ta’Qali National Stadium, making a 53^rd international appearance. Gareth Southgate’s side won 4-0, meaning a 26^th England clean sheet for the Everton No.1.

Elsewhere, Mykolenko’s Ukraine came from two goals behind to produce a stunning 3-2 victory over North Macedonia.

In Malta, England took the lead after just eight minutes through an own goal.

Trent Alexander-Arnold doubled the lead in the 28^th minute, and Harry Kane made it three from the spot just minutes later to score his 50^th competitive goal for England.

It was a quiet first half for Pickford, who was a distant observer, as England mounted attack after attack.

The second half continued in similar vein and ended that way too, with Malta failing to register a single shot on the night, highlighting England’s dominance.  

A Callum Wilson penalty made it 4-0 late on to put a gloss on the victory.

Pickford finished the evening with a 94% pass accuracy, completing 10 of his 11 long balls. 

Mykolenko was also in action tonight as Ukraine faced North Macedonia in Skopje. The game took Mykolenko to 31 international caps at the age of 24, as his country recovered a two-goal deficit to beat North Macedonia 3-2.

The full-back had the first attempt of the game for either side, outlining his attacking intentions on the night.

It was a competitive start to the affair between two good sides, and North Macedonia opened the scoring with a penalty after 30 minutes.

Soon after the first goal, Napoli midfielder Eljif Elmas made it two for the hosts in what was proving to be a difficult night for Ukraine.

However, after the hour mark, Bournemouth defender Ilya Zabarnyi pulled a goal back for the visitors, and minutes later Ukraine equalised through Yukhym Konoplya.  

A stunning comeback was complete when Viktor Tsygankov made it 3-2 in the 83^rd minute.

Mykolenko played the full 90 minutes in what was a crucial victory for Ukraine.

The result for England sees them remain top of Group C in qualifying for next year's European Championships, while Ukraine, also in Group C, draw level on points with North Macedonia and Italy.

Both players are likely to be back in action on Monday night, as England host North Macedonia and Ukraine face Malta.

England and Ukraine will face each other again on September 9.