SAINTS skipper James Ward-Prowse revealed how former teammate Rickie Lambert helped teach him his world-renowned free-kicks. Ward-Prowse made his 10th appearance for the senior England team in a 3-0 victory over Ivory Coast at Wembley on Tuesday. He was placed on set-piece duty before being substituted after 80 minutes in place of Conor Gallagher.
James Ward Prowse said: “I had to really go away and practice and try and perfect the dead-ball situations and being in the same squad as Rickie Lambert, who better to teach me? He had a fantastic record of free-kicks and I learnt a lot from him. I remember watching him practicing his free-kicks and I would loiter near him to be hopefully be asked to take one, or have that opportunity. So, to be practicing with him was great and to see how easy it made it look was pretty special. It was quite a nice moment to share the pitch with a Southampton legend showing me the way he takes free-kicks.”
Former England international Lambert played 235 games for Saints in total, scoring 117 goals and registering 64 assists. Meanwhile, Kyle Walker-Peters came off the bench for the Three Lions on Tuesday to win his second senior cap. He replaced Arsenal’s Ben White at half-time during the victory for Gareth Southgate’s side. Fraser Forster, who was called into the squad as a late replacement for Sam Johnstone, was an unused substitute.