Jude Bellingham pushed his case to start at No 10 after helping England go into the 2026 World Cup off the back of a storm-delayed 3-0 friendly victory over Costa Rica in Orlando.
Kick-off was an hour late after torrential rain but England were soon in the lead with Declan Rice scoring after nine minutes following good work from Barcelona’s new forward Anthony Gordon.
Noni Madueke missed an open goal before Gordon was awarded a penalty but it was overruled by VAR. Gordon scored from the spot on 68 minutes after a fine run from Bellingham, whose rival for the No 10 shirt, Morgan Rogers, then missed a good late chance. Ollie Watkins added a third after Rogers’ late shot was spilt by the goalkeeper.
England’s next game is their World Cup group L opener against Croatia on Wednesday in Dallas.
Dan Sheldon in Orlando breaks down the key talking points.
What did Tuchel’s starting XI tell us about the Croatia match?
Although he ultimately remained tight-lipped, Tuchel intimated before the game that the players who start against Costa Rica will be named with Croatia in mind.
Reece James and Nico O’Reilly in the full-back positions are nailed on to be named in the starting XI once the World Cup gets under way, while you would expect Marc Guehi, a second-half substitute in Orlando, to be playing from the off on June 17.
That leaves Ezri Konsa and John Stones in contention to partner the Manchester City defender, and it remains up in the air as to who will get the nod.
Central midfielders Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson were excellent, but that won’t come as a surprise, given the relationship they have struck up on the pitch.
If he is fit enough to start, then Bukayo Saka seems the obvious choice to play on the right wing, whereas Gordon and Marcus Rashford remain in a tight battle. If Rashford edged the New Zealand game, then Gordon certainly made his mark on Wednesday night and was one of England’s better players.
Bellingham, again, showed his class in the No 10 role and should it even be a debate as to whether he gets the nod ahead of Rogers?
So, but for maybe two or three players, the starting XI against Costa Rica was about as strong as Tuchel could go.
How did Madueke miss?
Tuchel’s revelation on Tuesday that Bukayo Saka is yet to fully recover from the Achilles injury he sustained in March, and cannot train on consecutive days, was a significant blow.
Saka was a substitute against Costa Rica, with Noni Madueke, his Arsenal team-mate, starting in his place on the right wing.
And Madueke had a great chance to double England’s lead after Jude Bellingham’s brilliant pass left him barrelling down on goal. Only Patrick Sequeira, the Costa Rica goalkeeper, stood between him and scoring.
So, when he rounded Sequeira and had nothing but an empty net in front of him, albeit slightly off balance and with a narrowing angle, you would struggle to find someone who didn’t think he would finish the move off.
But his left-footed strike, which had an xG of 0.96, bounced off the post and the chance was gone. During a short break in play afterwards, Bellingham went over to Madueke to give him a bit of encouragement.
Madueke hits the post with the goal vacant (Photo: Richard Pelham/Getty Images)
Will England face more weather delays?
England’s final warm-up game in Orlando was delayed by one hour, instead kicking off at 5pm local time, due to a thunderstorm.
There were lightning strikes overhead around two hours before kick-off and the pitch had a lot of surface water on it, although it drained away very quickly and looked in great condition when the match got under way.
And, despite the deluge, the sprinklers were turned on, much to the amusement of those inside the Inter&Co Stadium.
Weather delays are likely going to be a theme throughout the World Cup, so for England to experience one before the tournament gets going should stand them in good stead from the standpoint of knowing how to handle it.
Tuchel has previously said his England team will “adapt” to any and all conditions they experience in the U.S., and Wednesday’s win over Costa Rica was a good example of them overcoming the delay and not letting it impact their performance.
