England have taken a step to a positive result in Kiev following a goalless first half with Ukraine.

Theo Walcott threatened to open the scoring for the visitors early on but he was denied by a brave stop from Andriy Pyatov.

Ukraine dominated possession in the early stages and a nervy England defence were only doing just enough to keep out a number of trips into their box from the hosts.

England started to settle as the half progressed, with their midfield trio seeing more of the ball than their Ukrainian counterparts.

Roy Hodgson's men weren't far away from taking the lead in spectacular fashion in the 32nd minute when Steven Gerrard fired an effort just over the crossbar from 25 yards out.

Roman Zozulya had a good chance to test Joe Hart before the break but a poor touch at a crucial stage allowed the England defence to recover.