**Arsenal pair Noni Madueke and Bukayo Saka both impressed as England defeated Croatia 4-2 in the World Cup.**
Every single West Ham fan and a lot of England fans were unhappy when they saw Thomas Tuchel had picked Noni Madueke over Jarrod Bowen.
It was clear Bukayo Saka was going to go as the starter, even though many pointed out Jarrod had better stats; Saka was always going to go as the starter.
However, there weren’t many England fans that agreed with the decision to take Madueke as Saka’s back-up over Bowen, and even Cole Palmer, who somehow didn’t make the squad.
The Arsenal man has taken a step to prove a lot of England fans wrong already. Due to Saka’s lack of match fitness, the former Chelsea man started on the right wing in Wednesday’s 4-2 win over Croatia.
While he didn’t get on the scoresheet or even get an assist, Madueke was very impressive for the Three Lions in Dallas. His pace and directness was terrifying the defence both on and off the ball. His decision-making at times wasn’t the best, but he tired those defenders, which helped us towards the end of the game.
Bukayo Saka came on, and you could see the difference in end product; you can tell he’s not fully fit; he’s lacking his usual pace and sharpness, but the quality is undeniable. His assist for Marcus Rashford sealed the three points.
Madueke from the start with his energy and pace, with Saka coming off the bench with his quality in the final third, could be a recipe for success for Thomas Tuchel. Bowen doesn’t really have that same pace and directness to his game, especially in the final stages of the season for the Hammers.
It’s too early to say whether or not Tuchel made the correct decision to pick Madueke over Bowen yet, but it’s definitely got off to a good start.