Marc Guéhi, Ezri Konsa & Harry Kaneplaceholder image
Marc Guéhi, Ezri Konsa & Harry Kane | Getty Images
And just like that, the bubble burst. Where England were exciting and incisive in the second half against Croatia last week, they were sluggish and lacking in creativity during their 0-0 draw with Ghana on Tuesday evening.
Declan Rice said after the match that there was “no need to be negative or downbeat” and is probably right – plenty of teams have enjoyed successful World Cups despite a bad performance in the group stage – but the lack of both composure and creativity on display against a Ghana side who have struggled mightily over the past few years certainly weren’t going to whip up any enthusiasm amongst England’s supporters.
It’s a game which may give Thomas Tuchel reasons to reconsider some of his selection decisions for the final group game against Panama and perhaps in the knock-out rounds, which remain firmly within reach despite a turgid outing in Boston. But who played their way towards a spot on the bench and who kept their heads above water? We’ve rated every England player below.
England were poor against Ghana – but Guéhi stood out
Marc Guéhi won 12 of his 14 ground and aerial duelsplaceholder image
Marc Guéhi won 12 of his 14 ground and aerial duels | Getty Images
Jordan Pickford – 5/10: While the referee judged that Pickford was as much sinned against as sinning when he collided with Prince Kwabena Adu outside of the box, that doesn’t change the fact that he badly misjudged his attempt to handle the through ball – and the Everton goalkeeper continues to look just a little jittery in the early stages of the tournament.
Djed Spence – 6: Presumably picked because his pace would make it easier to cope with Ghana’s counter-attacks, Spence did his defensive work without fuss but couldn’t provide any kind of creative spark. England probably needed a left-footed player down the left wing to get around the opposing low block, and it was noticeable that they looked more threatening after Nico O’Reilly came on instead.
Marc Guéhi – 8: Guéhi was quietly outstanding at centre-back, and emerged with easily the most credit of any England player. His positioning was exceptional, he won a string of one-on-ones to keep Ghana at bay and was dominant in the air. Whenever the counter-attacks came near Guéhi, they were snuffed out – whenever they went around him, England looked vulnerable. He surely won’t be back on the bench against Panama.
Ezri Konsa – 4: Konsa looked rather less assured in defence at times and while he provided an excellent base for possession, he was also very, very fortunate not to concede a penalty for what seemed to be a clear foul on Adu. His clumsy, lunging tackle offered an object lesson in how not to handle similar situations.
Reece James – 6: James endured a couple of slightly dodgy moments at the back but generally recovered well enough to deal with the danger, and offered more going forward than he did against Croatia – it was his excellent cross that O’Reilly headed against the bar late on.
Kane among the culprits as England’s attack struggles
Harry Kane managed just 19 touches in the match against Ghanaplaceholder image
Harry Kane managed just 19 touches in the match against Ghana | Getty Images
Declan Rice – 6: Rice was rock solid at the base of England’s midfield and created no fewer than six shooting chances for his team-mates from set pieces, but none of them could be described as clear-cut. This was a perfectly reasonable performance from Rice, but he’s capable of being far more penetrative in open play.
Elliot Anderson – 6: Anderson was a little less dominant in his defensive midfield role than we’ve come to expect – he won just six of his 11 one-on-one duels, for example, lost possession a little more frequently than we’ve come to expect, and committed a couple of avoidable fouls. There was more good than bad, but Anderson has proven that he can be better.
Anthony Gordon – 5: This just wasn’t the kind of game which suits Gordon. Given desperately little space to run into, the Barcelona winger huffed and puffed but struggled to blow anything down whatsoever. He created a couple of half-chances but was rightly substituted in the second half.
Jude Bellingham – 5: Well below his best, Bellingham was just as baffled as anyone else when he was handed the player of the match award after the final whistle. The effort was there, but the finesse and the final pass were absent, and he was largely ineffective in his attempts to hurry the Ghanaian defenders into mistakes.
Noni Madueke – 5: Like Gordon, Madueke can look like a blunt instrument against disciplined low blocks, although he did get into some slightly more promising positions than his counterpart on the left flank. The end product wasn’t there, however, and he didn’t make much of a case to keep his place ahead of a fully fit Bukayo Saka.
Harry Kane – 4: Perhaps England’s greatest issue in these kinds of games is that they struggle to find ways to work the ball to Kane when he’s squeezed out in the middle. England’s greatest goalscorer was almost entirely anonymous for most of the game, seemingly showing up only to miscue their single best opportunity over the bar.
Saka and O’Reilly make their case from the bench
Bukayo Saka is managing an Achilles issueplaceholder image
Bukayo Saka is managing an Achilles issue | Getty Images
Bukayo Saka (on for Gordon 65’) - 7: While Saka wasn’t heavily involved after coming on – he touched the ball just 17 times – he did find time to showcase his ability to beat defenders one-on-one with technique and guile, and forced Ghanaian goalkeeper Benjamin Asare into his best save with a fine effort after Saka dribbled his way around the penalty area. Plainly pushing to start once he’s ready.
Nico O’Reilly (on for Spence 66’) – 7: A breath of fresh air. England looked far better and more balanced going forward with O’Reilly providing a left-footed option, and his passing and willingness to force his way into dangerous positions in the final third gave England some much-needed spark. Hit the bar with a header from James’ cross which could have settled the game.
Morgan Rogers (on for Bellingham 73’); Eberechi Eze (on for Anderson 74’); and Marcus Rashford (on for Madueke 83’) – 5: We’ve lumped Rogers, Eze, and Rashford in together as none of them really managed to make much difference after they came on to give England’s attack some fresh legs. The three substitutes combined for zero shots on goal and just one chance created – it was Eze’s ball back across the area from a corner which set up Guéhi for a looping header in injury time. Other than that, none of England’s back-ups really made a strong case to be selected ahead of the starters against Panama.
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