England manager Thomas Tuchel believes his team laid the foundation for a deeper World Cup run after defeating Panama 2-0 on Saturday to finish top of Group L, although he acknowledged there is still room for improvement before the knockout rounds begin.
England secured first place through second-half goals from Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane after being frustrated for more than an hour by a disciplined Panama side at New York New Jersey Stadium.
Bellingham broke the deadlock before providing the cross that Kane converted with a header, allowing the England captain to become his country’s all-time leading scorer in FIFA World Cup history with 11 tournament goals, surpassing Gary Lineker’s previous record.
Tuchel said his players had delivered exactly what the match demanded against an opponent determined to frustrate England’s attack.
“We did what was needed,” Tuchel told reporters after the match.
“It was what we expected: a tough match against a physical opponent. They are a difficult team to score against and we were the only team to create this amount of chances and score twice.
“We were very aggressive, we had to be careful with counter-attacks. We deserved to win, but it was a hard piece of work.”
England completed the group stage unbeaten with seven points, finishing one point ahead of Croatia. While Tuchel’s side controlled possession throughout much of the contest, Panama remained dangerous on the counterattack and forced England to remain patient before Bellingham’s decisive contributions settled the outcome.
The German coach said the victory demonstrated qualities that will become increasingly important as the tournament enters its knockout phase.
“There’s more to build on, you have to get so many details right and it’s an aggressive approach to defend the one-on-ones,” Tuchel said.
“The tournament starts again now in the knockouts. Now we collect our strengths and energy and build on what we have — we have the team spirit, fighting and belief. We will step up. The bigger the games get, the bigger we will get.”
England’s preparations for the Round of 32, however, may be complicated by an injury concern involving defender Jarell Quansah.
The right back suffered an ankle injury during the victory and now faces a race to recover before England’s next match in Atlanta.
“Classic ankle twist,” Tuchel said.
“He’s had it before, a matter of days, painful, he has his leg up high, ice. It will be a very tight race.”
Despite the injury concern, England will head into the knockout stage with confidence after winning their group and maintaining the defensive discipline that has underpinned their campaign, with Tuchel convinced his side can continue improving as the competition reaches its decisive rounds.
