Jordan Pickford and Declan Rice reflect as the Three Lions remain top of Group L after a World Cup draw with Ghana
Jordan Pickford and Declan Rice have backed England to finish the job in Group L after the Three Lions' goalless draw with Ghana at the FIFA World Cup 2026.
England remain top of the standings with four points from their opening two matches and know a positive result against Panama on 27 June will secure first place in the group and a place in the knockout stages.
While Ghana proved difficult opponents to break down, both Pickford and Rice stressed the importance of remaining positive as attention now turns to the final group fixture, and securing a place in the Round of 32.
Pickford said: “It’s football. When you get an early goal, it opens up the game a lot more, but they played a good game and we’ve got to be happy. We’re still top of the group and we can focus on Panama now and finish strongly in the group and top it.
“Blocks, recovery runs, it was top drawer. It was hard work that sometimes people don’t see. We would love to win the game, but we’ve not lost. It’s tournament football, and it’s in our hands to top the group.”
Thomas Tuchel's side were made to work throughout by a disciplined Ghana side who defended deep and looked to threaten on the counter-attack, but the Three Lions continued to search for a breakthrough and finished the stronger of the two teams.
Rice felt England's persistence was beginning to pay off as the game entered its closing stages.
“It’s always difficult when you play against 11 behind the ball, as deep as they were," Rice said. "You’ve got to find solutions. In the last 10 minutes, we found more than we did all game and we were probably unlucky not to score.