Gary Neville surprisingly insisted that England improved from their compelling win over Croatia in their frustrating draw against Ghana.
The Three Lions were held to a goalless draw on Tuesday night, having mustered only four shots on target despite dominating possession with 78% of the ball.
It was the most possession by any team at a World Cup since records began in 1966, without managing to score.
England’s possession figure of 78.8% against Ghana was the most on record (from 1966) by any side in a FIFA World Cup match without managing to score.
Clear-cut chances were few and far between as England struggled to break down Ghana’s disciplined defence.
Meanwhile, Ezri Konsa was lucky not to concede a penalty deep into the second half when he missed the ball and caught Prince Adu’s knee in a last-ditch tackle.
Both Jude Bellingham and Jordan Pickford avoided potential red cards: Bellingham for covering his mouth while talking to Jordan Ayew, and Pickford for colliding with Prince Adu, who was rushing through on goal.
But despite that, speaking on his Stick to Football Podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Neville reckons England’s display was more refined than their sizzling 4-2 win against Croatia.
Gary Neville had few complaints about England’s performance against Croatia
England boss Thomas Tuchel grew frustrated as the Three Lions were held by Ghana
‘I enjoyed the game,’ Neville said. ‘I’m going to get heavily criticised for this, but there’s part of me that thinks that was a better performance than the game against Croatia.
‘If you could mix together the Croatia game and the Ghana game, you’ve probably got a really good performance.
‘I liked large parts of the game – the control, the order, the chaos had gone. I thought [Marc] Guéhi and [Ezri] Konsa pushing on and stopping counterattacks, I thought they were in control of the match and passed it well.
‘Set pieces were a real opportunity in that game – there were loads of corners and free kicks, and the one Declan [Rice] put round to [Elliot] Anderson for the header, that’s a routine they’ve really worked at, they built that space round the back, and it’s a really poor header.
‘It’ll be interesting to see how that game gets received at home. Those are the sort of games I played quite a few times for England, where we’ve been knocking on the door, we can’t break them down, they’re so deep, and you get criticised for it.’
England captain Harry Kane missed a golden chance to become the top-scoring Englishman in World Cup history, smashing a rebound over the bar when he had a gaping net to aim at from six yards in the final five minutes.
‘You get the big chance with Harry Kane, and I couldn’t believe he missed it,’ Neville added. ‘He can’t miss those chances.’
Gary Neville admits Harry Kane can not afford to miss guilt edge chances
Perhaps the most encouraging sign was the England backline keeping a clean sheet – although it was precarious at times – after shipping two to Croatia in the opener.
Tuchel made two changes to the defence, starting Marc Guehi and Djed Spence in place of John Stones and Nico O’Reilly, as he figures out his strongest backline.
Neville reckons limiting Ghana to two shots will give the defence greater belief as the tournament ramps up.
‘If I step into one of those defenders’ shoes, or I’m the defensive coach on Thomas Tuchel’s backroom staff, I’m walking in there with [Jordan] Pickford – you’re not celebrating, not smiling, not bragging, but there’s a quiet satisfaction.
‘I think someone will say it in that dressing room: a 0-0 is the best draw you can get right now for England, because we need to build that confidence defensively.
‘I thought [Ezri] Konsa and [Marc] Guehi did that, to be fair.’
