One of the biggest questions for England at the 2026 World Cup will be who starts on the left wing.
It’s a question that has caused its fair share of debate, even before Thomas Tuchel named his England squad. And there were some shock omissions from the 26-man roster.
Now, it looks like a straight shootout between Marcus Rashford and Anthony Gordon – the latter making a real statement as England beat Costa Rica 3-0 on Wednesday.
So, who should be England’s starting left winger? We used our Comparison Matrix to assess the options.
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Marcus Rashford vs Anthony Gordon
Creativity
Creativity will be one of the key traits expected of England’s wingers this summer, with the widemen expected to pair cutting inside with going on the outside and getting to the byline, putting in crosses and providing cutbacks. Rashford and Gordon do have some stylistic differences, but it’s still an interesting comparison.
With the exception of through-balls, Rashford outperformed Gordon in every single creative metric, and many of them weren’t even close.
The returning Manchester United man doubled Gordon’s number of crosses completed per 90 minutes (1.6-0.8) and almost did the same on overall chances created (2.4-1.3). He was also more precise with the ball and got more involved in Barcelona‘s open-play sequences than Gordon did for Newcastle United.
However, as you’ll see from the two wingers’ goalscoring metrics, there may be a good explanation for this.
Goal threat
While England’s wingers need to carry out those traditional creative tasks, Tuchel will fully expect them to help the likes of Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham in the goalscoring department. There was a clear winner here during the 2025/26 club season.
Rashford dominates the goalscoring stakes, outperforming Gordon in every single category apart from conversion rate. Of course, the picture isn’t that black and white. Rashford was playing for a title-winning side and Gordon for a team that finished 12th in the Premier League.
What’s more, Rashford is much more comfortable cutting inside and getting shots on goal, whereas Gordon more often uses his pace to get on the outside of full-backs. That’s reflected in shooting volume, with the former averaging 2.6 per 90 minutes compared to just 1.9 for the latter.
Rashford was also far more active inside the opposition box, averaging 7.0 touches to Gordon’s 4.2. But once again, this could also be a byproduct of the two teams they played for.
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Dribbling and ball retention
Even in this possession-obsessed age of the game, dribbling and the ability to beat a man remains one of the most sacred traits for a winger. This is where Gordon really comes into his own.
Gordon wipes the floor with Rashford when it comes to ground duel success, take-on completion and fouls won. The former Everton man uses his pace to great effect, beating wingers one-on-one and drawing fouls in dangerous areas, whereas Rashford is a far more technical player.
Again a symptom of the club sides they played for in 2025-26, Gordon was also more active in winning the ball back, making 0.9 tackles per 90 to Rashford’s 0.5. He also lost possession just 12.9 times per 90, compared to 18.5 from Rashford.
This area is where Gordon could come into his own, especially in games against big nations where England need to play on the break, or if Tuchel requires somebody to crack open a tight match with explosive impact.
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