England were creatively stifled against Ghana as the Three Lions’ second-game curse struck again in perhaps their most disappointing repeat. But is Thomas Tuchel’s biggest worry at the other end of the pitch?
England have conceded just 0.87 xG in their opening two games and faced just one shot on target against Ghana on Tuesday night.
But on another night the Three Lions could have – and indeed should have – conceded a penalty for Ezri Konsa’s ill-advised challenge on Prince Adu, which the officials inexplicably ignored. The error was so noticeable that Ghana coach Carlos Queiroz cynically questioned whether VAR was working at the time.
England found their feet through Thomas Tuchel’s half-time Churchillian team talk after a somewhat shaky 45 minutes against an aging Croatia, but even then a few holes remained at the back. Had it not been for Harry Kane’s heroics in injury time, they would have felt tense in the last few minutes in Dallas as well.
For a team that hasn’t conceded a single goal in the qualifiers, their vulnerability to a side no one expects to uproot too many trees in this final is a concern. Especially since time is running out before more difficult tests follow.
Reece James’ injury will only compound England’s problems, with the right-back likely to be ruled out for the remainder of the tournament due to a hamstring problem.
The phrase ‘Attack sells tickets, defense wins championships’ was originally coined as an American football idiom, but on home soil, where the World Cup is taking place this summer, it is as relevant as any knockout tournament.
Going back to the first 32-team World Cup in 1998, five of the seven subsequent winners have kept five clean sheets and conceded just one goal in their remaining two matches. In 2010, Spain won each of their four knockout matches 1–0 and scored only eight times in the entire tournament. This was completely contrary to its reputation at the time.
There is another way. The holder, Argentina, scored 8 goals in 2022. This is the most goals by a World Cup winner since West Germany in 1954. But they had arguably the greatest player of all time to ask for on the other side.
Defense was a question mark hanging over England long before the tournament began. The Three Lions’ world-class options are lined up up front at opposite ends of the pitch, and while there is individual quality at the back, there are undoubted limitations.
Tuchel is aware of the limitations of his backline picks and it was interesting to see him make two changes for the draw against Ghana in a match where England were likely to dominate the ball at all times.
“Djed Spence and Marc Guehi deserve to play, we have a little more pace and a little more profile of players,” explained the coach.
Guehi was assured for 90 minutes but Spence lacked the attacking presence Tuchel wanted. He was charmed by Nico O’Reilly after 66 minutes. Nico O’Reilly was able to provide an attacking outlet, but his lack of the same pace and defensive awareness led directly to counter-attacks that Konsa had to punish. Most of Tuchel’s defensive options present the same kinds of compromises.
Djed Spence provided England with defensive security against Ghana but lacked bite going forward.
What is more concerning is that Konsa, one of England’s established regulars and the only defender to have started both games alongside Reece James, has had anxious moments in both games.
Of course, the Three Lions will defend differently when facing a bigger nation, but against Croatia, against Tuchel’s wishes, he spent most of the first half sitting in the low block and had a tough life moving between defense and midfield.
On the offensive side, playing without the ball can suit England, as their whirlwind 45 minutes against Croatia showed, hurting their opponents with quick transitions and quick vertical play.
However, there is a problem with exposing the weak lower abdomen. “(Declan) Rice and (Elliot) Anderson will need to be outstanding and protect our defense,” he said. Sky Sports’ Gary Neville in England’s tense opening match.
The manager’s choices show he’s still trying to find the right balance, but it doesn’t do much to build a stable defensive line.
But there are reasons for England and Tuchel to remain optimistic that things can get better. Of the seven previous World Cup winners, all failed to keep a clean sheet in at least one group match, and five conceded more than half of their goals throughout the entire tournament before the knockouts as they found their rhythm in the ‘easier’ portion of the competition.
This is the moment to fine-tune the situation, resolve any initial issues, and hopefully begin to build that understanding behind the scenes.
If England pull off a clean sweep against Panama and win Group L, they will face the third-place team in the last 32 and have another chance at promotion. But testing time will come to an end when they travel to Mexico in the last 16 and face Brazil in the quarter-finals.
But questions marks over the personnel, along with concerns about their quality for the world-class frontline waiting deeper into the tournament, will remain and give Tuchel some serious food for thought.
