After England’s goalless 0-0 draw with Ghana, Gary Neville believes Thomas Tuchel will have to make two changes ahead of Saturday’s group final against Panama.
England got off to a dream start to the tournament with an impressive 4-2 win over Croatia – finalists in 2018 and semifinalists in 2022. But in the second round, Tuchel’s men hit the wall. An energetic Ghana under Carlos Queiroz held off and made it 0-0.
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Although England still lead Group L and have good cards in hand to advance to the knockout stages, Neville believes they will need to find another way to play to break down a compact Panama side and get back on the winning track.
“All top teams have to deal with this,” Neville told Sky Sports.
“Manchester City under Pep Guardiola have probably spent 90 percent of their games in the last ten years standing on the edge of the opponent’s box and attacking where all the defenders are close together.
“When I played for Manchester United, when teams came to Old Trafford and went deep, it was sometimes very difficult to break them down.
“What England have to do is learn from the game against Ghana. Maybe put more crosses in the box, and get more players into the box earlier in the games.
“It doesn’t mean you should throw everything away from the fifth minute, but you have to be a little more expressive, take a few more chances with players in the box – and make sure the set pieces get better.
“There are things I think we can do against Panama that will help us more than they did against Ghana. Maybe Ghana was some kind of dress rehearsal for matches we will face in the future.
Two changes on the left
Although England still need a positive result to secure the group victory, Tuchel is unlikely to make major changes. But Neville believes the German should reconsider the left wing.
He doubts whether Anthony Gordon – who struggled to create chances against Ghana’s low block – should start. Instead, he highlights Morgan Rogers.
“I don’t want to blame Anthony Gordon – I think he’s a very good player,” Neville said.
“He’s had two difficult games, but I don’t think Marcus Rashford should be on the left. I think it should be Morgan Rogers.
“I like the idea of Morgan Rogers from the left side. He can connect better into the game there. He has more game intelligence. Rashford and Gordon are explosive – they’re great on the counter-attack – but if Panama are to go deep and be difficult to break down, you need players with more ingenuity and subtlety.
“For me, it’s about Rogers or Eze on the left – not Gordon or Rashford.
O’Reilly back at left-back
Neville also wants a change in defence. Djed Spence started against Ghana, but Neville believes Nico O’Reilly should be back in the starting eleven.
“I like Djed Spence, I have a lot of respect for him. I see that he is working hard, but I think Nico O’Reilly should probably come back,” he said.
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