📂 Categoría: Football | 📅 Fecha: 1781739064
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England fans demanded entertaining football at the 2026 World Cup – and that’s exactly what was delivered in Wednesday’s 4-2 win over Croatia.
The Three Lions kicked off their World Cup campaign with a thrilling victory in Arlington against their toughest opponents in Group L.
In Russia eight years ago, Croatia ended England’s dream of winning a first major tournament since 1966.
But a win over Zlatko Dalic’s men could be the springboard for Thomas Tuchel to finally end the country’s 60 years of hurt.
Three Lions roaring
In a topsy-turvy first half which saw four goals and Croatia equalise twice, skipper Harry Kane broke the deadlock from the penalty spot to create World Cup history.
And he can be fortunate he was given the chance to do so after referee Clement Turpin ordered a retake following his original missed effort.
Croatia soon hit back through Martin Baturina’s stunning effort from range, before Kane headed home Declan Rice’s corner to become England’s joint leading scorer at the World Cup.
That goal was then cancelled out by Petar Musa’s close-range volley, with Jude Bellingham – Europe’s youngest player to feature in four major tournaments – then restoring England’s lead shortly after the break.
While Tuchel’s predecessor Gareth Southgate was criticised for a pedestrian style of play, the new England never looked like resting on their laurels, with substitute Marcus Rashford then getting himself on the score sheet in the closing stages of the match.
If anything, the 4-2 win flattered Croatia, as goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic made a string of top second-half saves to deny Kane, Nico O’Reilly, Anthony Gordon, Declan Rice and Djed Spence.
But even though England impressed when going forward, there is reason for slight concern at how Croatia were able to easily score from their first two meaningful attacks of the game.
Here, talkSPORT’s legendary broadcaster Adrian Durham has rated and slated each player that took to the pitch.
Don’t Sweat It
Adrian Durham being a straight talker is a Sure thing.
You can rely on the talkSPORT host to be honest and, just like his player ratings, whatever happens Sure won’t ever let you down, official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026™
Kane is able
Another major tournament, another dazzling display by Kane.
The Bayern Munich marksman showed why many consider him to be the world’s best striker.
Wearing a Golden Boot patch on his jersey as a result of his heroics in 2018, you wouldn’t bet against the ex-Tottenham man from being top of the goalscoring standings in North America.
Durham purred over the 32-year-old in his ratings, awarding him a 9/10, simply branding him as, ‘Talismanic’.
Kane needs just one more goal to become England’s leading scorer in World Cup history.
Gunner need to do more
Starting ahead of Arsenal teammate Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke put in an impressive display against Croatia.
It was the former Chelsea forward that won England’s penalty, as he showed his pace by nipping in front of Luka Modric before being kicked to the ground.
Given a 7/10 rating, Durham said: “The great thing about Noni is that he drives at opponents.”
As for his Arsenal teammate Rice, Durham was left underwhelmed, as he urged the West Ham icon to be more progressive on the ball.
Awarded a 5/10, Durham remarked: “I think he was the biggest culprit in England’s strange first half.
“Be more forward-thinking, Dec.”
A Tuch of class
Speaking in his half-time assessment of England, Durham raged at England’s defensive lapses, as he remarked: “Sorry, you’re not going to win a World Cup conceding goals like those two, it’s so disheartening.”
England’s passiveness at the back led to Tuchel to demand more from his side, as Anthony Gordon told talkSPORT: “He said, ‘Loosen up,’ he said, ‘This is not what I see in training.’
“The training sessions have been so intense – the highest level – so it wasn’t what we’d done in training and he said that.
“He said, ‘What’s the worse that can happen – we lose the game? So what! Let’s go out and be ourselves.’
“And that really kicked us into gear because we came out strong.”
His speech to the players delighted Durham, with England putting in a one-sided dominant display after the break.
The tactical tweak led to Tuchel being given a 9/10 rating, as Durham said: “Half-time, he told them to ‘loosen up’ and told them ‘this isn’t what I’ve seen in training’ and he woke them up.
“Did his job properly.”
Tuchel will now be hoping for a repeat performance in England’s remaining Group L fixtures against Ghana and Panama.
England subs + manager: ratings
SUBS
Bukayo Saka – 7
Marcus Rashford – 7
Morgan Rogers – 8
Djed Spence – 7
Marc Guehi – N/A
MANAGER
Thomas Tuchel – 9
World Cup WhatsApp
Don’t miss an update from talkSPORT in our dedicated World Cup WhatsApp channel.
Search for ‘talkSPORT World Cup’ in your ‘Updates’ tab on WhatsApp and we’ll drop the proper, unfiltered football chat straight to your lock screen—no fluff, just pure talkSPORT energy.
It’s where you’ll find out all the new rules to watch out for, England and Scotland reaction and big match player ratings.
Plus there will be loads of debates on the biggest talking points as Haaland, Mbappe, Kane and the biggest names in football descend on America, Canada and Mexico.
England fans demanded entertaining football at the 2026 World Cup – and that’s exactly what was delivered in Wednesday’s 4-2 win over Croatia.
The Three Lions kicked off their World Cup campaign with a thrilling victory in Arlington against their toughest opponents in Group L.
In Russia eight years ago, Croatia ended England’s dream of winning a first major tournament since 1966.
But a win over Zlatko Dalic’s men could be the springboard for Thomas Tuchel to finally end the country’s 60 years of hurt.
Three Lions roaring
In a topsy-turvy first half which saw four goals and Croatia equalise twice, skipper Harry Kane broke the deadlock from the penalty spot to create World Cup history.
And he can be fortunate he was given the chance to do so after referee Clement Turpin ordered a retake following his original missed effort.
Croatia soon hit back through Martin Baturina’s stunning effort from range, before Kane headed home Declan Rice’s corner to become England’s joint leading scorer at the World Cup.
That goal was then cancelled out by Petar Musa’s close-range volley, with Jude Bellingham – Europe’s youngest player to feature in four major tournaments – then restoring England’s lead shortly after the break.
While Tuchel’s predecessor Gareth Southgate was criticised for a pedestrian style of play, the new England never looked like resting on their laurels, with substitute Marcus Rashford then getting himself on the score sheet in the closing stages of the match.
If anything, the 4-2 win flattered Croatia, as goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic made a string of top second-half saves to deny Kane, Nico O’Reilly, Anthony Gordon, Declan Rice and Djed Spence.
But even though England impressed when going forward, there is reason for slight concern at how Croatia were able to easily score from their first two meaningful attacks of the game.
Here, talkSPORT’s legendary broadcaster Adrian Durham has rated and slated each player that took to the pitch.
Don’t Sweat It
Adrian Durham being a straight talker is a Sure thing.
You can rely on the talkSPORT host to be honest and, just like his player ratings, whatever happens Sure won’t ever let you down, official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026™
Kane is able
Another major tournament, another dazzling display by Kane.
The Bayern Munich marksman showed why many consider him to be the world’s best striker.
Wearing a Golden Boot patch on his jersey as a result of his heroics in 2018, you wouldn’t bet against the ex-Tottenham man from being top of the goalscoring standings in North America.
Durham purred over the 32-year-old in his ratings, awarding him a 9/10, simply branding him as, ‘Talismanic’.
Kane needs just one more goal to become England’s leading scorer in World Cup history.
Gunner need to do more
Starting ahead of Arsenal teammate Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke put in an impressive display against Croatia.
It was the former Chelsea forward that won England’s penalty, as he showed his pace by nipping in front of Luka Modric before being kicked to the ground.
Given a 7/10 rating, Durham said: “The great thing about Noni is that he drives at opponents.”
As for his Arsenal teammate Rice, Durham was left underwhelmed, as he urged the West Ham icon to be more progressive on the ball.
Awarded a 5/10, Durham remarked: “I think he was the biggest culprit in England’s strange first half.
“Be more forward-thinking, Dec.”
A Tuch of class
Speaking in his half-time assessment of England, Durham raged at England’s defensive lapses, as he remarked: “Sorry, you’re not going to win a World Cup conceding goals like those two, it’s so disheartening.”
England’s passiveness at the back led to Tuchel to demand more from his side, as Anthony Gordon told talkSPORT: “He said, ‘Loosen up,’ he said, ‘This is not what I see in training.’
“The training sessions have been so intense – the highest level – so it wasn’t what we’d done in training and he said that.
“He said, ‘What’s the worse that can happen – we lose the game? So what! Let’s go out and be ourselves.’
“And that really kicked us into gear because we came out strong.”
His speech to the players delighted Durham, with England putting in a one-sided dominant display after the break.
The tactical tweak led to Tuchel being given a 9/10 rating, as Durham said: “Half-time, he told them to ‘loosen up’ and told them ‘this isn’t what I’ve seen in training’ and he woke them up.
“Did his job properly.”
Tuchel will now be hoping for a repeat performance in England’s remaining Group L fixtures against Ghana and Panama.
England subs + manager: ratings
SUBS
Bukayo Saka – 7
Marcus Rashford – 7
Morgan Rogers – 8
Djed Spence – 7
Marc Guehi – N/A
MANAGER
Thomas Tuchel – 9
World Cup WhatsApp
Don’t miss an update from talkSPORT in our dedicated World Cup WhatsApp channel.
Search for ‘talkSPORT World Cup’ in your ‘Updates’ tab on WhatsApp and we’ll drop the proper, unfiltered football chat straight to your lock screen—no fluff, just pure talkSPORT energy.
It’s where you’ll find out all the new rules to watch out for, England and Scotland reaction and big match player ratings.
Plus there will be loads of debates on the biggest talking points as Haaland, Mbappe, Kane and the biggest names in football descend on America, Canada and Mexico.
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📚 Información de la Fuente
| 📰 Publicación: | talksport.com |
| ✍️ Autor: | Jake Lambourne |
| 📅 Fecha Original: | 2026-06-17 23:23:00 |
| 🔗 Enlace: | Ver artículo original |
Nota de transparencia: Este artículo ha sido traducido y adaptado del inglés al español para facilitar su comprensión. El contenido se mantiene fiel a la fuente original, disponible en el enlace proporcionado arriba.
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