England’s fans were carried out of the magnificent Dallas Stadium into the warm night air on something rarely associated with following this team: pure, uncomplicated exhilaration.
Harry Kane had told his teammates to be “free in the mind” and embrace the pressures the World Cup brings. They took him at his word — for good and for bad.
The 4-2 win over Croatia was a mixture of thrilling attacking football and alarming defensive fragility. But the smiles on the faces of supporters making their way from this vast arena told their own story.
This was, whisper it, fun.
England Have Been a Hard Watch. Not This Time.
England have been difficult to watch for much of the recent era — even when they were reaching the Euro 2024 final and the World Cup quarter-final in Qatar four years ago. Those were dry, conservative tournaments despite the progress made.
Sir Gareth Southgate’s excellent record showed that the ends justified much of the means. But it was rarely done in a style that moved you toward the edge of your seat.
Not here. Dull this was not.
This was a game you could not turn your gaze away from for a second — whether it was watching the cold fury of Thomas Tuchel in the first half, the attacking siege England launched in the second, or the remarkable sight of the England head coach falling into the arms of Jürgen Klopp — working on the touchline as a TV pundit — at the final whistle.
It was football on the edge. And England’s followers, judging by their reaction throughout and afterwards, absolutely loved it.
Whether they will love it if England defend so poorly against better opposition is another matter entirely.
The Defensive Concern: Tuchel Will Know It Wasn’t Good Enough
The thought of world-class strikers being faced with the kind of slipshod defending seen in Dallas — particularly in the first half — is a very sobering takeaway.
Tuchel could barely disguise his displeasure as Croatia came back into the game twice after England had led through Kane. The selection of Ezri Konsa ahead of Manchester City’s Marc Guehi was contentious before kick-off, and Konsa did not make a compelling case for his continued inclusion.
It is a debate that will intensify ahead of Tuesday’s match against Ghana in Boston. England led twice and still found themselves being pegged back to 2-2 — a deeply uncomfortable position given the gulf in talent between themselves and a Croatian side that has seen better days.
Whatever Tuchel said at half-time, it was unlikely to have been pleasantries.
Bellingham and the Turn of the Game
Whatever the message was, it worked.
Jude Bellingham restored England’s lead within moments of the second half beginning — and it was the moment everything changed. Bellingham left Mario Pašalić trailing before beating Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livaković with a surging, powerful run from midfield.
It was the moment the game turned. England — clearly fuelled by a few verbals from Tuchel over half-time — came out with more urgency and intent from the first second of the second period. Croatia were pinned back under a wave of attacks for a significant spell midway through the half, one they somehow managed to survive until Marcus Rashford wrapped things up late on.
Bellingham was England’s powerhouse throughout — a player who seems to physically grow in these moments, his surging runs and technical quality giving the side a dimension that had been missing in the first half.
Kane Makes History — Eventually
Harry Kane’s afternoon was characteristic of the entire England performance: brilliant in parts, imperfect in others.
He now has a remarkable 81 goals in 115 international appearances. His opening goal saw him equal Gary Lineker’s World Cup record of 10 goals for England — a milestone arrived at on the biggest stage in the sport.
He also had a penalty saved after a stuttering run-up — before winning a reprieve when the referee adjudged Livaković had strayed off his line. Kane was not passing up the second chance.
The early penalty had been won after Noni Madueke was quicker to the ball than the labouring Luka Modrić — a cameo that encapsulated the generational shift in this match, the old Croatian master unable to keep pace with England’s pressing energy.
Madueke, Tuchel’s Calls, and the Bellingham Question
Tuchel’s team selection presented genuine dilemmas given the resources at his disposal. Selecting Bellingham ahead of Morgan Rogers — “the tightest of calls,” Tuchel admitted — proved correct. Choosing to preserve Bukayo Saka’s fitness by starting Madueke also worked.
Madueke was lively throughout, and his role in the opening penalty set the tone. Saka, when he eventually came on, immediately looked England’s most dangerous attacking threat.
Tuchel’s Substitutions: Bold, Brave, Brilliant
The defining moment of Tuchel’s tactical approach came in the 72nd minute, with England leading 3-2.
In previous eras, cautious substitutions — an extra midfielder, a defensive body, a holding role to protect the lead — would have been the instinctive response. Not here.
Rogers replaced the more defensively inclined Declan Rice. Rashford came on for Anthony Gordon. Saka replaced Madueke.
Three attack-minded substitutions when the game was still live and a lead needed protecting.
Wayne Rooney, working as a pundit for BBC Sport, was emphatic in his approval: “When we were sat there watching the game and I saw the three lads coming on, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Morgan Rogers, I said ‘I absolutely love these subs’. I loved how positive Thomas Tuchel was being because if you sit back and wait for Croatia to come on then it gets nervy. It’s brave and shows he’s trying to win the game.”
He added: “Then Djed Spence came on and all four were involved in that Rashford goal. I think it’s brilliant.”
Paul Robinson, the former England goalkeeper and BBC Radio 5 Live pundit at the game, agreed: “The way he made his subs was brave and bold. They came on and affected the game. The biggest thing I can take from this is that the players who came on gave Thomas Tuchel a real headache — and that’s the biggest thing for a manager.”
Former England keeper Joe Hart was equally direct: “He said ‘we’re going to blow these out of the water’. We have the legs, we have the ability. He brought them on and it’s so good for the squad for the bench to come on and impact like that.”
The three attacking substitutions directly led to Rashford’s winning goal — the culmination of a sequence involving all four of those brought off the bench. It was the embodiment of a philosophy.
“The Second Star on the Shirt”
Tuchel has not attempted to downplay expectations since taking the job. “The second star on the shirt” — referring to winning a second World Cup for England, 60 years after the first — has been his stated aim from the beginning.
His attacking strategy means he is unlikely to face the accusation of conservatism that was constantly levelled at Southgate. This was a manager who, when leading 3-2 with 20 minutes remaining against a team that had already equalised twice, chose to take off his holding midfielder and bring on three attackers.
That is not a coincidence. That is a coaching philosophy made visible in a real, consequential decision.
Whether it will work in every circumstance — whether the defensive frailties exposed by Croatia will survive contact with France, Brazil, or Spain — remains to be seen. The thought of world-class forwards exploiting the kind of gaps that opened up in the first half is genuinely sobering.
But the alternative — going back to the conservative approach that kept England safe but kept the tournament dry — does not appear to be on the table.
What Comes Next
England’s first steps at this World Cup were hesitant and uncertain in phases. When they hit their stride, though, it brought to mind that word again.
Fun.
Tuchel knows that winning the opening game is crucial in providing the platform for progress from Group L. He now has that platform. The task against Ghana in Boston on Tuesday is to build on it — to take the elements that worked (the attacking intent, the pressing, the substitution courage) and address the elements that did not (the defensive positioning, the man-marking confusion, the build-up decision-making).
Future opponents will have watched this match and taken note of both dimensions. The attacking display will have caused trepidation. The defensive display will have given encouragement.
Whether England can deliver the former while substantially reducing the latter will define how far this tournament run goes.
But for one night in Dallas, England were something they have rarely been in recent major tournament history.
They were worth watching. They were exciting. They were, yes — fun.
Read More: Why England Looked So Vulnerable Defensively Against Croatia Despite Scoring Four
