Five things we want to see from England vs. Ghana

Four goals, waves of attacking football and a second-half blitz offered plenty of encouragement, even if the defensive looseness left Thomas Tuchel with work to do before Ghana.

With a place in the knockout stage potentially on the line, these are the five things we want to see from England in Boston.

Get Guehi in

England looked vulnerable far too often in Dallas. Croatia scored twice and could easily have had more before the break, exposing a central defensive pairing, in Ezri Konsa and John Stones, that never looked entirely comfortable.

Marc Guehi’s late cameo did little more than get him warm, but there is enough evidence from the last few years to suggest he deserves another opportunity.

Whether Tuchel sacrifices Konsa or even makes the bigger call and leaves out Stones, England need a little more calm and authority at the heart of the defence. Guehi has rarely let England down and now feels like the obvious solution.

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Find a way to unlock Gordon

Anthony Gordon’s evening against Croatia was largely defined by what everyone else did around him. While Noni Madueke caused problems and Harry Kane thrived, the Barcelona winger struggled to stamp himself on the game and was eventually replaced by Marcus Rashford.

Gordon’s pace and movement remain valuable assets, but England need more end product and more involvement if he is to keep his place. Ghana’s counter-attacking approach could leave spaces for him to exploit, but Tuchel may need to tweak England’s shape or encourage Gordon to attack inside more frequently.

Keep the cavalry coming from the bench

One of the most striking aspects of England’s win over Croatia was the quality waiting in reserve. Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Morgan Rogers all injected fresh energy, helping England turn superiority into goals.

Rashford grabbed the fourth, Saka provided the assist and Rogers immediately added drive from midfield.

International football has increasingly become a squad game and Tuchel’s replacements changed the tempo entirely. There is no reason to abandon that formula now.

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Maintain the killer instinct

England have spent years retreating into themselves after taking the lead. Not this time. Jude Bellingham scored within two minutes of the restart and England kept pushing rather than protecting.

They created enough chances to turn 4-2 into 6-2 and never looked interested in settling for control. That ruthlessness has been absent from too many previous tournaments. Tuchel should continue to encourage it, because with Kane, Bellingham and company, England are far more dangerous chasing another goal than defending one.

Let Noni Madueke be Noni Madueke

There are few players in the squad who attack defenders with quite the same enthusiasm. Madueke won the penalty for England’s opener and repeatedly stretched Croatia with his willingness to run directly at opponents.

With Saka still building his way back to full sharpness, England should lean into the Arsenal winger’s unpredictability rather than trying to smooth off the rough edges. Madueke offers something different.

Against a Ghana side likely to defend compactly and spring forward quickly, that directness could be exactly what England need.

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