England's difficult second game. It has happened again.
Scotland in 2021. The USA in 2022. Denmark in 2024. And now Ghana in 2026. For the fourth successive tournament, England won their opener and then drew their second group match. It is becoming a pattern that Tuchel, for all his tactical intelligence, could not break.
After the breathless 4-2 dismantling of Croatia in Dallas, Boston was supposed to be the night England sealed qualification with a game to spare and marched into the knockout rounds with momentum building. Instead it was a frustrating, stodgy, goalless draw against a Ghana side who came with one plan and executed it perfectly: defend deep, defend in numbers, and frustrate England into impatience.
Sound familiar? We literally wrote about this exact scenario in our Group L preview. "Panama will defend deep, defend in numbers, and look to frustrate England into impatience." As it turned out, Ghana got there first.
England had 78.8% possession. That is the highest figure by any England side in a World Cup match on record, going back to 1966. It is also the most possession by any team who failed to score at a World Cup in that same period. Dominance without penetration. Control without a cutting edge.
Nineteen shots, but only three on target. The most shots England have had without scoring in a World Cup match since the 2002 group stage game against Nigeria, when they had 25. Ghana, by contrast, managed two shots all night, the fewest England have ever faced in a World Cup match on record. Two shots. Zero on target. And yet they walked away with a point that all but secures their place in the Round of 32. Sometimes football is not fair. Sometimes it does not need to be.
It was the first time since Belgium vs Croatia in 2022 that neither side managed a shot on target in the first half of a World Cup match. The first half was perspiration without inspiration, as the saying goes. England passed and probed, Ghana blocked and cleared, and the half-time whistle came with a collective shrug from both sets of fans.
Tuchel made two changes from the Croatia game. Guehi came in for Stones at centre-back and Spence replaced O'Reilly at full-back. Both changes made sense: Stones had been shaky against Croatia, and Guehi looked solid all night, comfortable on the ball and assured in the tackle. That was one positive to take from an otherwise barren evening.
Declan Rice was England's best player. He tried to drive the team forward from deep, firing a stinging free kick over the bar in the 14th minute and heading over from a Madueke cross on the half hour. Rice was doing what Rice does: leading, pressing, demanding more from everyone around him. But even he could not find the key.
Bellingham had a shot blocked. Kane saw an effort deflected behind. Anderson had a close-range header blocked early in the second half. Anthony Gordon fired tamely into the midriff of Ghana's goalkeeper Benjamin Asare. Chance after chance, and none of them taken.
Tuchel threw on Saka, Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze, both making their World Cup debuts. Saka curled a shot that Asare brilliantly tipped away. And then, in the dying minutes, the moment that will haunt Kane: O'Reilly headed Reece James' cross against the woodwork, the ball fell to Kane six yards out with the goal gaping, and he fired over. Six yards. Kane. Over the bar. That is going to sting for a while.
"At the end of the halves we grew into it and found rhythm but, of course, fatigue crept in. I liked the attitude, but you need a bit of luck. We had enough shots and crosses and a big chance with Harry Kane. It is what it is." — Thomas Tuchel
It was not all England pressure. Ghana had a genuine shout for a penalty when substitute Prince Adu was played in behind and appeared to be caught by a wayward Konsa slide tackle. The on-field officials waved it away. VAR, inexplicably, did not intervene.
Ghana boss Carlos Queiroz was furious afterwards, asking pointedly whether VAR had been operational at the time. For a podcast called It's Gone to VAR, this was the kind of moment that writes itself: the system exists to correct clear and obvious errors, and there is an argument that this was exactly that. The name of the podcast has never felt more relevant.
It is easy to focus on what England did wrong. But Ghana were superb at what they came to do. Thomas Partey marshalled the midfield with Premier League quality. The defence held its shape for 90 minutes without a lapse. Asare made every save he needed to. And Semenyo, when Ghana did break, carried a threat that kept England honest at the back.
Ghana won their opener against Panama through a 95th-minute Caleb Yirenkyi goal. They now have four points from two games, level with England at the top of Group L. Carlos Queiroz, who has been in the job barely two months, has his team organised, disciplined and dangerous on the counter. This is a squad with 15 World Cup debutants, managed by a 73-year-old who took the job in April. Whatever happens from here, Ghana have already exceeded expectations.
Four points from two games. Not qualified yet, but it would take an extraordinary set of results for England to go home now. Panama on Saturday in New Jersey is the final group game, and a win would guarantee top spot. A draw might be enough depending on other results.
But the bigger question is not about qualification. It is about identity. The Croatia game suggested England could be the most exciting attacking team at this tournament. The Ghana game suggested they still cannot break down a low block. Both things can be true. The challenge for Tuchel is making sure the first version turns up more often than the second.
Paul Merson, speaking on Sky Sports after the match, nailed it: you need movement to beat a defence. Runs off the ball, wingers running across the line, players taking risks. England had the ball constantly but too often passed sideways, waiting for something to happen rather than making it happen. Against better sides in the knockout rounds, that will not be good enough.
And then there is the elephant in the room. Merson mentioned Foden and Palmer by name. They are not in the squad. They were not selected. But on nights like this, when England desperately need a moment of magic to unlock a packed defence, their absence is felt. Tuchel made his choice. He has to live with it.
Here is the thing about England at tournaments: the overreaction is always the story. Beat Croatia 4-2 and suddenly we are winning the World Cup. Draw 0-0 with Ghana and suddenly we are going home in the group stage. Neither is true. The reality is somewhere in the middle, as it always is.
England have four points. They have Kane on two goals, Bellingham on one, Rashford off the bench delivering. The defence looked better with Guehi in it. Rice is the engine. Anderson is quietly proving he belongs at this level. The squad depth is there. The quality is there.
What was missing last night was the spark. The invention. The willingness to take a risk in the final third. Against a team as disciplined as Ghana, you need someone to try something different, and too often England chose the safe option.
Panama on Saturday. Win, top the group, and move on. The tournament does not remember the second group game. It remembers what happens next.
Our full World Cup roundup — Sweden destroyed, Yamal returns, Messi's hat trick, the Premier League fixtures, and listener questions on Man City. The Ghana Reaction Pod drops next.
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