England secured top spot in Group L with a short second-half burst enough to secure a 2-0 victory over Panama in New York.
It was not a vintage performance from the Three Lions, who had to wait until the 62nd minute to break through when Jude Bellingham volleyed home from Bukayo Saka’s corner.
Bellingham turned provider five minutes later with a delicious cross headed in by Harry Kane, putting the contest to bed and sealing the first objective of topping the group.
Nevertheless, Thomas Tuchel has food for thought heading into the knockout stages, with England far from the finished article and still having plenty of room for improvement.
England vs Panama analysis:
Kane and Henderson in leagues of their own
England were firmly in control during the first half, but despite nine attempts on goal, they were severely lacking quality in that final third.
Panama proved they are a different proposition to the cannon fodder they provided on debut eight years ago, when the Three Lions were 5-0 up at half-time in their group clash on the way to a 6-1 rout.
The Canal Men are far more compact and stubborn under Thomas Christiansen. They were unfortunate to concede right at the death against Ghana, while Croatia also scored just once past them.
They held out for just over an hour until England’s superiority eventually told.
After Bellingham opened the scoring, Kane was in the right place to head home his 11th World Cup goal – moving him beyond Gary Lineker to become his country’s leading marksman at the finals outright.
That was ultimately enough to put the contest beyond Panama, but there was still time for further Three Lions history to be made in the last few minutes.
When he replaced the impressive Elliot Anderson, who was one of England’s better performers as he continues to shine in the heart of midfield, Jordan Henderson became the first player to represent his nation at a magnificent seven major tournaments.
Better from Bellingham
Impressive in the opening game against Croatia, Bellingham was unable to impose himself against Ghana. His most memorable contribution was his half-time war of words with opposing head coach Carlos Queiroz.
There were initially just flashes of his quality during the first hour of the contest. However, a five-minute surge would ultimately prove the difference by swinging it in England’s favour.
First, the Real Madrid reacted quicker than his marker to poke home Bukayo Saka’s corner on the volley. That was his second goal in three appearances – as many as he managed in his previous 18.
He then timed his run well to get in behind the Panama defence, and clip an inviting cross for Kane to head home.
Bellingham, who was withdrawn soon after with the knockout stages in mind, became only the fourth Three Lions player to score and assist in a World Cup match – after Roger Hunt, Joe Cole and Raheem Sterling – and the youngest overall at 22 years and 363 days.
Further injury woes at right-back
The full-back positions have been a hot topic of conversation well before the World Cup began, initially with the decision to leave out Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Tino Livramento was then forced to withdraw on the eve of the tournament and, after missing this game, the most extreme reports are suggesting Reece James’ future participation at the finals is in doubt.
Tuchel changed things around on either side of the defence from the Panama game, with Jarell Quansah given his first start. However, he landed awkwardly while challenging Jose Luis Rodriguez around the hour mark, and was unable to continue.
That leaves Djed Spence as, currently, the only fit natural right-back in the squad. Ezri Konsa and, possibly, Trevoh Chalobah could full in there, but the situation is far from ideal heading into the knockout stages.
On the whole, though, that was the only outstanding negative for Tuchel’s side. There is still plenty of room for improvement – certainly if they want to be lifting the trophy at New York New Jersey Stadium in just over three works’ time. Five-minute bursts simply won’t do against the bigger and better teams.
Nevertheless, you don’t want to peak too soon at a tournament like this, and it means England have somewhere to go and work on as things progress towards the business end.
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