Latest Sports Stories

Football News

Some supporters are breaking the bank to follow Thomas Tuchel’s team and early indications are that it’s worth itThey came, they saw and they went to the rodeo. For those England fans who made it to Dallas, watching Thomas Tuchel’s side see off Croatia in their opening match of the 2026 World Cup was the experience of a lifetime.“I’ve never been to a World Cup game before so I thought it was something I couldn’t miss out on,” says Oli Lee, a music producer from Kent who now lives in Los Angeles and is otherwise known as one half of the Snakehips duo who had a UK top-five hit in 2015. “I paid $800 (£604) for my ticket but it was all worth it. We had a bit of a session in Dallas – I ended up jumping in a pool with my phone in my pocket but it’s still working somehow!”About 4,000 England supporters bought tickets for the game at the futuristic Arlington Stadium – home of the Dallas Cowboys – but it is estimated that as many as 15,000 were in Texas for the buildup. A video of some launching into a chorus of “Sweet Caroline” during a break at the Fort Worth Rodeo on Tuesday went viral on social media, with many others embracing the cowboy culture by purchasing hats to shield them from the unforgiving Texan sun.One pub in downtown Dallas, called the Londoner, said they ran out of beer after fans spent almost $30,000 in the space of three hours, with some reports in UK media claiming they ended up being thrown out by police. That version of events was disputed by the police themselves, who told local media that no one was forcibly removed.There were no major incidents before or after the game either. Fifa has played down reports some ticketless fans were able to sneak past security to gain access to the stadium despite stringent measures in place. Some supporters are thought to have paid in excess of $1,000 for a ticket and a spokesperson for the England fans group Free Lions said that some had come to the United States on the off-chance they could pick up a late deal.“I think a lot of fans were waiting for prices to come down but they just haven’t,” he said. “There’s still a lot of demand there and I think a few fans have travelled without tickets.”Lee Williams, from south London, has been planning his trip for months and took in the co-hosts’ opening match in Los Angeles before spending a few days by the beach in Mexico. He arrived in Dallas on Tuesday and is hoping to be back for the semi-finals if England make it that far.“It’s been absolutely brilliant,” he says. “The cost is astronomical – I’ve been scared to look at my bank balance in the mornings. We bought a round of six beers last night and it cost north of $100. But the vibe has been great and the Americans have really bought into the whole thing. The atmosphere was unbelievable in Los Angeles. I’m going home to work to pay off what I’ve spent out here.”Williams, who works in finance and also coaches Millwall Lionesses Under-18s, was encouraged by the way Thomas Tuchel’s half-time speech inspired England to seize the initiative after conceding a second equaliser just before half-time against Croatia. “I loved Gareth Southgate but he was slightly more conservative than I thought we should have been given the talent we have at our disposal. I like the way that we really took the game to Croatia in the second half and decided to take risks.”He would, though, like to see Marc Guéhi brought in to shore up a defence that looked very shaky during the first half. “A new centre-back pairing is going to take a long time to bed in – if you are going to go far in any competition then your goalkeeper and centre-backs have to be stable and settled. Hopefully it clicks,” he adds.Representatives of England fan groups, including Free Lions, visited all three group stage venues in March to have an idea what to expect. Most have been encouraged to book the train – costing a cool $80 – to get to the next game against Ghana at the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, 30 miles from downtown Boston. Williams will be watching back home in LA, albeit very nervously.“It’s so stressful – I never feel comfortable,” he says. “When Harry Kane missed that first penalty I thought it was a terrible omen. But, as the game progressed, we got stronger. Hopefully we can go all the way this time.”

Football News

You don’t win World Cups by running riot for 10 minutes in mid-June but this felt like the start of something newWalking away from Dallas Stadium, feet throbbing in the heat of the late-evening Texas tarmac, it was tempting to picture the scene inside England’s dressing room three hours earlier, the score 2-2 at half-time against a perky Croatia, with Thomas Tuchel’s side in danger of slipping into a familiar tournament pattern of entropy and angst.What exorcism was performed here? Did England’s players burn a ceremonial John Lewis merino wool slim-fit quarter zip? Did Tuchel deliver his calm, tactically focused half-time speech while simultaneously sawing the head off the lifesize Gareth Southgate effigy the team still carries around with it, before inviting his players to whack it like a piñata, open letters tumbling from the waistcoat pockets, leadership mottoes and worries about penalties scattered across the floor as its bearded and frowning head steadily deflates, a moment of pure era-shedding catharsis?There are no second acts in American World Cup lives. Except, it turns out, if your manager can find the right words after a first half during which England played episodic, mechanical football, when they seemed to be still in the old-mannered routines, assembling their siege towers and engines of war, football reduced to the status of stuff that happens in between corners.It would be wrong to describe that second half as a shedding of the Gareth-shaped homunculus on this team’s back. But sometimes you do have to stop trusting the process, change the patterns, and just run forward with a great deal more aggression. England burned an effigy of everything they used to be in the second half in Dallas. Is it real? And where will it lead them across the next two games and five weeks beyond that?The most notable part was the sense of seeing an era-shift happen in real time. If the first half felt like the least flattering notes of Southgate-ism, the second was something closer to whatever it is Tuchel wants England to do now, hunters not gatherers, a team that believes it can actively win games of football rather than waiting for its opponents to die of old age.This was a genuine break from the usual narrative pattern of these occasions, those days when England fade and wilt, the football of the plodding drum. Instead, England had more, not less, energy as the game progressed. They took 22 shots at goal, three-quarters of them in that second half. In their last tournament opener, the 1-0 win against Serbia, they had four shots all game and played like a team trying to run a marathon inside a Victorian diving suit.Nobody with any sense of scale is suggesting England are now ready to win a World Cup, or that they didn’t look in Dallas like a team that could just as easily lose one. But there are positives. They have now played a proper fixture and beaten a good team, both firsts in the Tuchel era. Key attacking players have scored and assisted. Marcus Rashford, an excellent impact sub, looked happy and loose and frankly quite alarming to all those tiring thirtysomething defenders out there.Plus, with all due respect to the cultural impact of Southgate’s England, we got a glimpse in Dallas of what a genuinely elite tactical manager might do with that legacy. There will be a lot of talk about the Surge, that period after half-time when England basically ran all over Croatia, as the midfield pressed harder up the pitch and played more aggressive and more accurate vertical passes.Tuchel talked afterwards about England’s fans enjoying this spectacle in the pub, and there is a point here about connection, the way people want to see their team play, the way England fans support the team. The Surge wasn’t exactly pub football, four-pints football. It felt more chemical, more wired and wild-eyed, football of the pre-match buttock-launching firework party.The point has been made that England played like a Premier League team, but they were more like a Premier League team of the 2000s, all galloping adrenaline, running power, the can’t-live-with-it thrusts. This is not in itself a recipe for victory against elite opponents. But the key is that this team has that in its chamber. The ability to overwhelm is in there. The backpack is loaded with ordnance. The Surge was a warning to the rest of the field that while you will have chances to take this team down, you’re also going to get clipped yourself.Tuchel’s substitutions were also progressive. At 3-2 up the England playbook states that you protect and fall back. But Tuchel did not reach for Jordan Henderson, who really does appear to be present here as the midfield equivalent of an emotional support dog. Instead, he sent on three attackers, then rejigged again as the midfield began to look a little open.It would also be wrong to overlook the good bits in that first half. The set-piece threat is a genuine asset, and England really should have scored twice more from corners. Even the first-half penalty carried some vindication of Tuchel’s selection policy, a foul caused by one very quick, agile footballer outmanoeuvring a 40-year-old. This will happen when that’s how you stack your team. England may lack some craft, but they can also be physically horrible to play against.It was a good post-match for Tuchel too, one where he still jabbed a little at Jude Bellingham, even after his best game for England. “He has learned to be a team player,” was Tuchel’s verdict, which is quite funny and salty and naggy. Keep Bellingham hungry. Make him want to prove things. This feels like a good line.There was merit too in the unusually chippy half-time chat from Anthony Barry, a reflection of the fact Tuchel doesn’t care about upsetting people, doesn’t follow the regimental line of sombre deference and respect for fame and status.Instead Tuchel has a refreshing brusqueness as England manager, like the Victorian stepfather who will slap you on the back as he sends you off to boarding school, but who really doesn’t want to hear anything about doubt, fear, flags, heavy shirts and so on. It is a major asset, used right, for a team that had become a bit mannered and sombre in its previous guises.There are clearly elements for England to fix. Luka Modric is more gnarled these days: less little boy dressed up as a witch, more former four-time surfing champion of Middle-earth. He was eventually harried from the pitch in Dallas. But England’s midfield is still a problem. The spacing felt wrong in the first half. Declan Rice is carrying an injury. Midfield is always key in knockout football, in those periods when the ability to control the tempo becomes the key asset. Do they have the ability to play that way too now?The defence also looks rusty. England’s starting attack fitted the Tuchel model of energy and speed, but also looked thin on paper. The good news is England’s starting front three in Dallas have 85 goals between them. The bad news is 81 of those have been scored by Harry Kane. This had better work, Thomas.The good news is Kane looked happy in the system, with runners ahead of him and space to drop deep. Even his retaken penalty carried a premonition of the half-time regearing. There are no second acts in American lives. Except when a goalkeeper has clearly encroached by leaving his goalline. The retake was just right. Don’t stutter and wait, Harry. Spank it into the corner.Does any of it mean much in the longer term? England don’t often start well, even in their better summers. We remember the last-gasp burgle against Tunisia on the fly-ravaged banks of the Volga, the 1-1 against Ireland in 1990, which felt like watching a medieval game of bladder wrestle in a Gloucestershire village.There is also a long way to go. You don’t win it by running riot for 10 minutes in mid-June. But there was something different here, and Tuchel is their key asset in this regard, if only as a point of difference, the polar opposite of sclerotic tactical caution and the weight of caring a little too much. Whatever happens from here this feels like progress. England: now available in fun form.

Football News

Manager said second-half performance was ‘rewarding’England’s next group game is against Ghana on 23 JuneThomas Tuchel said he wanted his England team to entertain the nation and that he pictured the scenes in the pubs as his players took the handbrake off to power past ­Croatia 4-2 in their World Cup opener on Wednesday.England were passive in the first half, too deep, the connections lacking. They entered the interval at 2-2, Harry Kane’s goals cancelled out by a pair of soft concessions that were in keeping with the team’s openness.But England exploded into life at the start of the second half, Jude ­Bellingham’s surging run and finish in the 47th minute the spark for an extraordinary period of pressure. Tuchel had told the players to calm down during the interval, not to worry about the result and be true to their way of playing.After Bellingham’s goal, they had seven clear openings leading up the hour, albeit they could not take them. Croatia were rocking and Tuchel knew the pubs in England would be the same. Croatia had a couple of moments when they might have equalised before the England substitute Marcus Rashford sealed the win in the 85th minute after a clinical counterattack.It is unclear whether a gung-ho approach will lead to World Cup glory, but the performance has ignited a sense of possibility and Tuchel is keen to harness the momentum. England’s next game is against Ghana on Tuesday.Tuchel was asked whether fans could expect England to take the handbrake off during the tournament. “It is what the boys did in the second half – exactly that,” he said. “It is good. That is what needs to be done. Nobody can guarantee the outcome, but we can guarantee the effort.“Can we expect more of that? Yes. It is good and it is rewarding. Hopefully everybody enjoyed it. And it brings a connection. I had a thought in the second half: ‘People in the pubs will like this.’“I was sweating, but that is a good watch where we created and ­created and went for it and won another ball and then a second ball. That is why you are in a pub and watching together on a big screen to get emotional and hopefully we can transmit that.”Tuchel’s frustration with England’s first-half performance was rooted in how they dropped too deep out of possession, seeking to protect the 1-0 lead that Kane’s early penalty had given them. It was a classic England move – or failing. Tuchel wants to see only aggressive, front-foot football.“We just dropped way too early into a deep block,” Tuchel said. “From a middle block … way too early into a deep block. Normally if we go to a middle block it’s not a problem. We have clear triggers to go out of it into a high press.“We wanted to have John Stones pushing into midfield [from central defence]. They blocked John with their No 9 so maybe they also knew or it was a coincidence. It took us a while to understand that Elliot [Anderson] can then push [from central midfield].“So we lost a bit of confidence, couldn’t find the right triggers and we had the feeling that we have to protect something. We ended up too deep and too passive. In the second half, it was much better. We were much more active and aggressive.”Tuchel said the conditions inside Dallas Stadium were a challenge, despite it being a domed air-conditioned venue, and that Stones had “cramps in both legs in the end”. The defender has not played many matches since early December. Kane also suffered cramp in the dressing room afterwards but is understood to be OK. Declan Rice intends to soldier on despite hamstring and lower-back discomfort.“We saw the [physical] numbers – the players really put a shift in,” Tuchel said. “They said it was quite humid and difficult to digest it so I think John was just like everyone else … everyone was very tired in the dressing room, which I like because then I know that you did something. And we need this. Overcoming the tough moments, sticking together.”

Football News

The way substitutes combined for the fourth goal against Croatia vindicated Thomas Tuchel’s desire to instil a brotherhood ethosIt is Bukayo Saka who ignites the move. Tight to the right, approaching halfway, the England winger turns on a sixpence and surges away from Josko Gvardiol. Saka’s work in tight spaces, his close control, is a consistent delight.He plays a pass up and inside for Morgan Rogers and, at this point, Djed Spence is running on the outside. Rogers looks for him but Nikola Vlasic slides in to challenge and the ball breaks. Saka is alive to it, slicing inside and beating Josip Sutalo. England sense the knockout blow because Saka has options, the best being Marcus Rashford over to the left. Croatia have only Josip Stanisic back. Saka goes to Rashford, who steadies himself, jinks inside Stanisic and sidefoots low into the bottom corner.It is a beautiful goal and it gives England an unassailable 4-2 lead in the 85th minute. Their World Cup is off to a flyer and if they have confirmation – validation, too – of a swashbuckling second-half performance, a shift in the collective mindset, there is a detail that Thomas Tuchel cannot ignore.Ever since he came into the job, the England manager has been obsessed with the creation of a brotherhood in his squad; players who can put their main-men club personas to the side for the greater good, who, if they are asked to play 20 minutes or even only 10, will do so with everything they have. For Tuchel, the clinching goal against Croatia was the purest example of what he has wanted to see because Saka and Rogers, Spence and Rashford had all come on as substitutes.For Rashford, in particular, it must have been a tough one to take when Tuchel said he was starting with Anthony Gordon on the left rather than him. Rashford was lively in the first half of England’s World Cup warm-up game against New Zealand; Gordon not so in the second period. And yet Tuchel was not entirely happy. When he criticised his first-half team for lacking positional discipline, it came to feel as though he had Rashford in mind. Tuchel started Gordon in the second and final warm-up match against Costa Rica, giving him 71 minutes and being rewarded with a driving performance.Although Rashford flickered again when he came on to replace him – as did all the substitutes – Tuchel knew he had to go with Gordon against Croatia.Here in the US there is a glamour in Major League Baseball about the role of closing pitcher; the player who leaves the bullpen towards the end to get the team home. It is not the same in football. No one wants to be a closer. And yet Tuchel knows his version of them will be crucial. Can he sell them as the heroes of his squad?‘We needed this quality [from the substitutes] to bring it over the line,” he said. “I know they are all starters. So it is new for them. But they also know it is a period of time that is so special and they buy into this idea that we do it as a team. This is the only way.“We are so strong from the bench and I was so impressed with everyone against Costa Rica, for example, because they pushed on the buttons and pushed on the gas and kept suffocating the opponent.”Rashford’s finish against Croatia was a champagne moment for him; only his second goal in 13 England appearances under Tuchel. The other was the stoppage-time penalty for 5-0 against Serbia in Belgrade last September. It feels like a 50-50 decision for Tuchel between Rashford and Gordon. And with Gordon not playing well against Croatia, the debate will rage over who ought to start against Ghana on Tuesday.It is not quite the same on the opposite wing between Saka and Noni Madueke, the dynamics skewed by Saka’s lack of full fitness. He continues to manage an achilles problem and, the way that Tuchel talked, it did not sound as though Saka would be a starting option against Ghana.“Bukayo is ready and will get more and more ready,” he said. “I think once we go to the last game of this group [against Panama on Saturday week] he will be ready. He was strong in training on Tuesday in small spaces. It was just a matter of if the game [against Croatia] was open and was up and down.”Like Saka, Madueke likes to cut inside on to his stronger left foot. Unlike Saka, he does not appear to trust his right as much. Remember his horrible moment against Costa Rica when he dribbled around the goalkeeper to the right of goal only to take on the finish with his left foot and hit the post? His body shape was wrong.Madueke did go on the outside a couple of times against Croatia to good effect, most notably when he crossed low for Jude Bellingham on the half-hour; the midfielder just could not convert. Madueke’s pace is such a threat. His performance against Croatia gave Tuchel encouragement and food for thought.“All four of the wingers are competing against each other at the highest level,” Tuchel said. “We had some 10 against 10s in training, some finishing patterns, attacking patterns, defensive patterns. Everyone is on but on in such a respectful way that we had some tough decisions to make.“They know we will need them and the time will come when they start. The time will come when they can finish and be decisive from the bench. It is now four more weeks and in four weeks you can swallow it and digest it and buy into it. We selected the group because we were sure that they could do it and they all can.”

Football News

Storming second-half display comes after coach’s speechCoach tells team to ‘show the world what we can be’Harry Kane has revealed that a half-time speech from Thomas Tuchel when he told England “to show the world what we can be” inspired victory in their opening match of the 2026 World Cup.Croatia equalised twice before half-time after Kane had equalled Gary Lineker’s record for goals scored by an England player at the World Cup finals with a penalty and a header from Declan Rice’s corner. But a much-improved performance in the second half saw Jude Bellingham re-establish England’s lead before Marcus Rashford came off the bench to wrap up the victory late on.“He told us to take the shackles off, calm down and let’s go. He said what’s the worst that can happen? Show the world who we can be,” said Kane of Tuchel’s rousing speech.“We came out in the second half full gas and they couldn’t live with it, and that’s the level we have to set in every game. The way we controlled the game once we went ahead, we never really looked like we were in danger and then scored on the counterattack. We had a spell where we could have scored three or four. Credit to everyone: the first game of the tournament and a great result against a tough side.”Bellingham added: “It wasn’t one of those where it was a big drama or standing up and shouting; it was what the team needed. We have a mature group with great leaders in there; everyone knew the level we had to get to. The start of the second half gave us a great platform.”There were concerns when Rice was taken off as a precaution in the second half and Tuchel said the Arsenal midfielder had felt discomfort in his lower back and upper hamstring.“He feels discomfort. And I didn’t want to take any risks. So if I take Declan off, which I never wanted to do,” said Tuchel. “But it was the moment to protect him. I hope it’s nothing more. Declan just reassured me at the end. ‘It’s good, it’s good.’ I know the discomfort and we will take care of it.”The England manager also acknowledged that his players had shown signs of nerves despite going twice ahead but hopes that they will learn from the experience.“Sometimes if you want to get it so perfectly right, you sometimes want it too much and you overthink it,” he said. “In the end, in doubt, we took the decision to go backwards, on and off the ball. We played way too many [passes] backwards, we played way too many back to our goalkeeper. It took us a while to find our confidence. That’s why I said maybe it’s also normal. I had the hope that the goals would help us. It was not the case.”Reflecting on his half-time speech, Tuchel added: “I told them to calm down. We just conceded the goal. To calm down, calm their nerves. And encourage them to do it our way. I told them that my perception of them in the last 17 days will not change no matter what the result is. I want them to do it their way. Our way. I want them to be brave, courageous and tenacious on the front foot. And just go for it.”

Football News

Even as forwards shine, Dallas performance exposes shaky defence that may cost Thomas Tuchel and England dear come the tournament’s sharp endWhen Thomas Tuchel won the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021 the success was built on unflinching defensive rigour and midfield discipline. Five years on, though, Tuchel’s England displayed neither of those qualities during a dreadful first half in Dallas. They kept losing the ball in dangerous areas, struggled to maintain their shape without the ball and were rocking when Croatia stung them with a second equaliser just before half-time.The vibe could hardly have been less convincing. Anthony Barry, Tuchel’s No 2, let rip in an interview with ITV, accusing England of doing all the wrong things, of playing with “a nervous energy”, of making everything “confused and complicated” against opponents well versed in making their craft and experience in midfield count.Of course, England got away with it in the end, the response in the second half astonishing, Barry’s words no doubt delivered in even stronger terms by Tuchel in the dressing room. Yet while they won their opening game in Group L thanks to a moment of breathtaking power from Jude Bellingham and a late breakaway goal from Marcus Rashford, the overall display was far from good enough. The attack spluttered in open play during those first 45 minutes and the press malfunctioned. The spaces between Elliot Anderson and Declan Rice in midfield were too big and although it was better after the break, the main takeaway is that England have no chance of winning the World Cup if they defend this badly in a potential quarter-final against Brazil.It has been easy to fall into the trap of dwelling on the big forwards during the tournament’s opening week. After blistering bursts from Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé, the stage was set for Harry Kane to step up Wednesday. Inevitably he delivered, scoring twice, first with a retaken penalty and then with a header from a corner. Even so England’s set-piece prowess could not detract from the structural flaws, for it was Croatia who played the silkier football during the first half and capitalised on poor defending to score two exceptional goals from open play.The jitters at the back had set in early, England’s attempt to pass their way out ending with Nico O’Reilly and John Stones conceding a corner on the right. They were thrown by Croatia’s pressing and took a while to respond. There were constant turnovers of possession, exposing the back four, and it was from a ball lost by Bellingham in midfield that Martin Baturina was able to hammer in Croatia’s first goal.The concern for Tuchel is that tournaments are rarely won without a solid defence. England can go blow for blow against some sides, but would they get away it against the very best? It feels unlikely on this evidence, meaning Tuchel’s biggest focus before facing Ghana next week has to be on tightening up at the back. Do not be fooled by the result: England were lucky. There was a stunning surge after Bellingham made it 3-2, Dominik Livakovic forced into a series of saves, but Croatia had chances to score another before Rashford killed them off.In fairness, Croatia have some dangerous forwards and are an excellent tournament team. Beating them is no mean feat and it goes without saying that Tuchel is too smart to look past the defensive frailties. They will also hope that some of the problems in midfield were down to Rice, who joined up with the squad late after the Champions League, tiring before going off midway through the second half. Yet building up Rice’s fitness will be easier than justifying Tuchel’s faith in Stones. The former Manchester City defender barely played last season, was rusty on and off the ball during his 87 minutes on the pitch and was turned too easily by Petar Sucic before the Croat teed up Baturina to whip a shot past Jordan Pickford from 20 yards.This is not a vintage England defence. O’Reilly made his debut at this level and was targeted at left-back. Reece James had issues on the other side and Ezri Konsa wobbled next to Stones. Croatia’s second goal, made by Ivan Perisic and swept in by Petar Musa, found James and Konsa positionally wanting.No doubt Harry Maguire will have something to say on his next podcast appearance. In terms of the options available to Tuchel, though, it might be wise to bring Marc Guéhi in for Stones against Ghana. These lapses are not surprising. Stones has been an incredible servant for England but his minutes have to be managed and he was turned inside out by Ollie Watkins when City lost to Aston Villa last month.A win’s a win, then? Not quite. The format means England are all but guaranteed a place in the last 32 now but Messi, Mbappé and Haaland will be licking their lips when they look at Tuchel’s defence.

Football News

Goal against Croatia in his side’s World Cup opener was an angry one with a rising sense of inevitabilityAnd breathe again. For the opening 45 minutes under the giant Victorian train station roof at the Dallas Stadium, England produced a performance that was a bit like watching one of those YouTube videos where an awkward and frightening Chinese robot has learned how to dance like Michael Jackson.Dogged and occasionally convincing, but the kind of spectacle that does generally end with the robot falling off the stage. England didn’t just play like machines in that first half. They played like faulty machines, scared machines, contributing almost zero free-form football to a 2-2 half-time score that included two Harry Kane set-piece goals; the first a set piece from a set piece, a penalty after a corner, set piece squared.Was this going to be the story here? Is this how we’re going to go down, in a kind of singularity, the death of hope, football as units of action, deathly set moves? Tuchel called it last September. Throw-ins are back. Corners are so hot right now. In that opening half England had those parts, but nothing much else in between.At which point, the most important thing happened, not just in this game, but in Tuchel’s time with England. Credit must go to the manager for whatever he did to these players at half-time. And also to Jude Bellingham, who scored what would turn out to be not just the decisive goal in this 4-2 win, but also a moment of drive and energy that was completely at odds with everything to that point.This wasn’t quite an individualist’s goal, a dribble, or a moment of craft. It was an expression of basic sprinting will. It was an angry goal, and in exactly the right way. Bellingham took the ball in the right channel, running on to a simple pass over the top, and just kept going, veering inside, all drive and focus, with a rising sense of inevitability. He had the speed to leave two defenders mooching in his vapour trial, and the skill to produce a fine, cold, guided finish into the far corner at a full sprint.It wasn’t just that England were 3-2 up in that moment. Or that they looked like a team. More that they looked like they actually wanted to take part in a game of football, that this wasn’t just an activity to be undertaken out of fear and self‑loathing . For the next 10 minutes they swarmed all over Croatia, might have scored four, and gave a glimpse not so much of patterns of play, but of a willingness to actually do this, of the muscle, speed and ruthlessness that are undeniably there in this team.It felt right that Bellingham should be the man to kick over the console table and bring something ragged and raw to the day. It is easy to criticise him at times, given the level of his fame and status, the slight sense of confusion as to what his attributes really are, whether he has the deeper gears, the super-strengths of an elite player, or just the mannerisms and the profile.Some have suggested Bellingham is just a player of elite moments, the only answer to which is, well, he’s 22, and elite moments will do just fine thanks. We’ll take those. Not least when, as here, they can change the entire shape of the day, the energy in the room, perhaps even the way England are going to play here. With any luck the team can now breathe around him for the rest of this tournament. Most significant, by the end, with Marcus Rashford adding another, this felt like something entirely new. It was fun, free, a little rough. England can do this. Who knew?The Dallas Stadium is a genuinely epic arena, rising up out of the dead heat of Texan plain like a crash-landed alien spaceship. Inside, it’s like entering some futuristic microclimate, a place to store your secret island, your ark-full of uber humans for the coming rapture.Before kick-off the spectacle was almost overwhelming from the sealed press box high up in the gods, the huge glazed canopy roof, the red and white, the 160ft screen picking out the terrifying planetary scale heads of members of the crowd.The upper tiers were decked in the well-worn travelling England flags, the roll call of names, Huddersfield, Gillingham, Grimsby, like an alternative shipping forecast.And the opening 12 minutes were all about Harry Kane, who finally got to become a place kicker in an NFL stadium, scoring from a retaken penalty. A little later Kane got to realise his other childhood dream of scoring an Arsenal goal, heading in direct from Declan Rice’s corner following a Croatia equaliser.England stalled from there. They began to totter on their feet, circuit boards smoking. Tuchel was present here in all black, with that familiar look of some founding American settler, a goggle-eyed Dutch farmer in a straw hat out there tilling the lands. He must take credit if not for the start, then for the way England altered the energy here.And also for the balance that became apparent by the end in midfield. Whatever England achieve in the US is likely to centre on how well Rice and Elliot Anderson can drive the game. It seems Tuchel has a type in there: upright, willowy, floppy-haired right-footed Englishmen.It would be a bit of a stretch to suggest anything that happened in Dallas could amount to an act of vengeance for 2018. But England did finally wrest control here against the deathless Luka Modric, 40 years old and a more gnarled figure, but still the same gliding, bobbing miracle of balance and technique.Modric left the field soon after England’s surge. Croatia were probably always there for the taking. But there was hope here, and energy, and best of all something a little ragged and human.

Football News

Harry Kane was in fine form while Dominik Livakovic stopped the scoreline running away from CroatiaJordan Pickford Could have done better with Baturina’s goal. Made crucial late save to keep England ahead but looked shaky. 6Reece James At fault for losing his man for second equaliser. Dangerous in attack, not so good defensively. 6Ezri Konsa Struggled in first half. Improved after break but his place could come under pressure from Marc Guéhi. 6John Stones Looked rusty and made a nervy start. Improved as the game went on, needs minutes badly. 6Nico O’Reilly Got forward at every opportunity and should have scored from a corner. A work in progress at the back. 7Elliot Anderson Kept things ticking over nicely in midfield. Excellent ball to set up Bellingham’s goal. 8Declan Rice Produced pinpoint corner for Kane’s header. Not his usual dominant self in midfield and looks fatigued after a long season. 7Noni Madueke Won England’s penalty and looked very dangerous down right flank in place of Bukayo Saka. 8Jude Bellingham Guilty of losing the ball in buildup to Croatia’s first goal. But made amends in style with a brilliant goal. 7Anthony Gordon On the periphery for most of the first half and couldn’t make an impact despite his best efforts. 6Harry Kane Played more like a quarterback than a striker at times but still equalled England’s World Cup finals scoring record. 9Substitutes: Marcus Rashford (for Gordon 72) Picked his spot brilliantly for his goal that even Livakovic couldn’t get near 7; Morgan Rogers (for Rice 72) Struggled in central midfield and looked far more comfortable further forward. Great ball to set up Spence 6; Bukayo Saka (for Madueke 72) A surprise to see him given injury concerns but played part in Rashford’s clincher 7; Djed Spence (for Bellingham 80) Should have scored moments after coming on but denied by Livakovic 6; Marc Guéhi (for Stones 87) A late introduction when the game was already won 6Dominik Livakovic Off his line too early for penalty but some unbelievable stops to keep a rampant England at bay. 9Josip Sutalo Didn’t know whether to track Kane when he dropped deep and was caught out on more than one occasion. 5Luka Vuskovic The teenager lost sight of Kane for England’s second goal but Tottenham have a real prospect on their hands. 7Josko Gvardiol The Manchester City defender had his hands full with Madueke. 6Josip Stanisic A lively presence down the right flank for Croatia and often got the better of O’Reilly. 7Luka Modric A surprise to see him give away an early penalty for fouling Madueke. But still oozes class despite his advancing years. 7Mario Pasalic Decent strike went just wide at the end of first half but lost out in midfield battle. 6Ivan Perisic Such a clever header to set up the second equaliser. Has incredible energy for a 37-year-old. 7Petar Sucic Brilliant assist for Baturina’s goal, missed a great chance late on after Pickford fumble. 7Martin Baturina Took his goal brilliantly and the Como forward caused England problems with direct approach. 7Petar Musa The FC Dallas striker volleyed past Pickford with aplomb and was a real handful for England’s defenders. 7Substitutes: Mateo Kovacic (for Modric 58) Couldn’t wrestle back control other than for a five minute period 6; Marco Pasalic (for Vuskovic 66) Almost equalised not long after coming on but was denied by Pickford 6; Igor Matanovic (for Musa 66) Could do nothing about Rashford’s goal after Croatia were carved open 6; Nikola Vlasic (for Baturina 78) Tried to inject some urgency to Croatia’s attack in the final stages 6; Andrej Kramaric (for Mario Pasalic 79) A real handful when he came on for last 10 minutes but couldn’t find equaliser 7

Football News

Thomas Tuchel made it plain that when the stress came with the serious business of World Cup matches, he believed his England team would thrive. What had gone before, especially in the friendlies, was little more than a distraction. Here in the Lone Star state, which tallies with what England have on their shirts, it was time to make a statement about that second star.There was a fair helping of stress against Croatia, the 11th best team in the world and the highest ranked pot two nation in the tournament – particularly in the first half. It was down to defending that was simply too open and generous. A seesaw opening 45 minutes ended 2-2, Harry Kane scoring England’s goals, the first from a retaken penalty. Martin Baturina and Petar Musa replied for Croatia. England were powerful on corners. The overall sense in open play was one of confusion.And yet with the heat on, they responded. Jude Bellingham was in the mood throughout, determined to play without fear and to the point of maximum expression and it was the midfielder that tilted the contest in England’s favour with a storming run and finish.It was a powerhouse display from England in the second half. They created a fistful of chances, albeit at 3-2 it remained a little too edgy for Tuchel’s liking. Croatia knew they might need only one moment and the substitute Marco Pasalic almost provided one towards the end, Jordan Pickford saving England with a smart block.England had too much. A pleasing detail was the impact of some of Tuchel’s substitutes. Djed Spence almost made it 4-2 before Marcus Rashford did with a clinical finish – a jink inside and a low shot. The chance was laid on by another replacement, Bukayo Saka. England are up and running.It was wild at the outset, fast and loose, England guilty of messing about with their buildup play, giving Croatia hope. The pendulum swung with the early England goal and it was sparked by the sharpness and determination of Noni Madueke, whom Tuchel started ahead of Saka.After Croatia could not properly clear a Declan Rice corner, which Kane won with a deflected shot, Madueke beat Luka Modric to the breaking ball. Modric’s attempted clearance turned into a hack at Madueke and the scene was set for Kane from the penalty spot.Everybody knew what Kane was thinking about as he went through his pre-penalty routine. The critical miss in the quarter-final loss by France at the last World Cup. Incredibly, Kane was thwarted again, the Croatia goalkeeper, Dominik Livakovic, reading his intentions and going left to save.This time fortune smiled on the England captain. Livakovic had left his line before Kane struck the ball and, after a video assistant referee review, Clément Turpin ordered a retake. Tuchel once described the referee as “terrible” and a “1/10” performer after Turpin had sent him off in a Champions League game. Tuchel was happier with him here. Kane made the most of the reprieve, going for the same corner and watching Livakovic go the wrong way.Thank goodness for the house that Jerry Jones built or, more specifically, the roof the Dallas Cowboys owners put on this venue. It was a blazing 32C outside in Arlington but inside the dome the air-conditioning was set to 22C. It made a mockery of the hydration breaks, which were booed by the England supporters.Zlatko Dalic had preferred Mario Pasalic to Mateo Kovacic in one of the deep midfield roles and Tuchel struggled to adapt England’s press in the first half. Croatia were cohesive on the ball, able to make life hard for England and their first equaliser came as no great surprise.There was a vulnerability about England at the back and when Croatia won possession on halfway from Bellingham, they dropped a ball up the inside-right channel for Petar Sucic. He jinked inside John Stones, sending him off towards Dallas, and the layoff was whipped by Baturina into the far top corner. Pickford got a hand to it but there was too much power.Croatia’s second equaliser had a similar feel to it. From an England point of view, it was even more galling. Josip Sutalo flipped a ball over a static England backline – where was Reece James? – and Ivan Perisic was clear and able to direct a header back to the unmarked Musa. His volleyed finish was true. It cancelled out Kane’s second goal, a thumping header from another Rice corner. That time, it was Croatia’s marking that broke down.Tuchel could not be happy with the first half and his assistant, Anthony Barry, made that clear during a half-time interview. His conclusions? Too much nervous energy from England. Not enough sound decisions with the ball. England needed clarity. They needed a goal upon the restart and they got it from Bellingham. Who else?Croatia could not live with his surging runs, his desire to get into areas that made life as uncomfortable as possible for them. It was a ball up the inside-right from Elliot Anderson that appeared to be for Madueke only for Bellingham to take over. He did that a lot. He was too quick for the covering Sutalo. The low shot was angled perfectly into the far corner.It was the prompt for England to turn the screw. For a crazy spell, it felt like a school game, Tuchel’s players too big and too strong for Croatia. There was a flood of chances for them leading up to the hour – clear ones, as well – only for the finish to prove elusive. Nico O’Reilly blew two headers from Rice corners, Anthony Gordon going close on one of the rebounds. Kane had further sightings. Bellingham had another. So did Rice.It was an entertaining spectacle, much to like in attacking terms from an England point of view. The result was the best bit.