Whilst the opening match against Croatia showed that England are among the contenders to win the 2026 World Cup, the match against Ghana highlighted the English team’s shortcomings when attacking a deep-lying defence. Carlos Queiroz set his team up to cede possession to the English, but under no circumstances did he want them to have the space to play their game.

This is evidenced by England’s 79 per cent possession. However, Tuchel’s side were unable to speed up their passing and barely created any dangerous chances in Ghana’s penalty area in the first half. The Africans were unable to capitalise on the pace of Semenyo or Iñaki Williams, but this did not concern them as long as they kept a clean sheet.

The second half began at a faster pace, with the English pinning Carlos Queiroz’s side back in their own area and creating some danger from set-pieces. Despite this, Ghana defended very well and had their chances on two counter-attacks which they failed to convert. The clearest chance of the match fell to England in the closing minutes, when O’Reilly’s header crashed off the crossbar and Harry Kane sent the rebound over the bar from the edge of the six-yard box with everything in his favour.

Results from Matchday 2 of the 2026 World Cup group stage

• Czech Republic 1-1 South Africa
• Switzerland 4-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Canada 6-0 Qatar
• Mexico 1-0 South Korea
• United States 2-0 Australia
• Scotland 0-1 Morocco
• Brazil 3-0 Haiti
• Turkey 0-1 Paraguay
• Netherlands 5-1 Sweden
• Germany 2-1 Ivory Coast
• Ecuador 0-0 Curaçao
• Tunisia 0-4 Japan
• Spain 4-0 Saudi Arabia
• Belgium 0-0 Iran
• Uruguay 2-2 Cape Verde
• New Zealand 1-3 Egypt
• Argentina 2-0 Austria
• France 3-0 Iraq
• Norway 3-2 Senegal
• Jordan 1–2 Algeria
• Portugal 5–0 Uzbekistan
• England 0–0 Ghana
• Panama 0–1 Croatia
• Colombia 1–0 Congo

The top spot will be decided against Panama

Although the draw may seem disappointing, the fact is that England have already qualified for the World Cup round of 16. England are level on four points with Ghana, but top Group L on goal difference. Furthermore, on the final matchday they will face Panama, who have lost both their matches, are already out of the tournament and are the weakest side in the group.

If Thomas Tuchel’s side beat the Caribbean side, they will top the group unless Ghana beat Croatia by a margin of two more goals than England’s winning margin. It seems unlikely that in a match that looks set to be evenly matched – even with the Croatians as favourites – Carlos Queiroz’s side will secure a clear victory over a team that has reached the final and the semi-finals in the last two tournaments, respectively.

The group will be decided on Saturday 27 June at 22:00 UK time. Thomas Tuchel is expected to start O’Reilly at left-back again, as his performance against Croatia was brilliant and, against Ghana, England’s best chances came whilst the Manchester City full-back was on the pitch.

England need to win to ensure their route to the round of 16 is as straightforward as possible.

2026 World Cup Group L standings after the second matchday

1. England 4 points
2. Ghana 4 points
3. Croatia 3 points
4. Panama 0 points