England had 80 percent possession against the Black Stars, completed nearly 600 passes, and mustered 19 shots. Only three were on target, though, and it took 36 minutes for them to create a chance from open play, when Declan Rice headed way over. In fact, England didn’t really create a clear chance until the 87th minute, when Nico O’Reilly headed off the crossbar and Harry Kane blasted the subsequent rebound high into the seats behind the goal.
There was a whole lot of sideways passing while wingers Anthony Gordon and Noni Madueke were double-marked whenever they received possession. Jude Bellingham and Rice barely had room to breathe – never mind pass the ball – when they tried to drift between the lines.
“I am so proud of the way our players fought during the game, how much they stand behind the plan, the game plan,” Queiroz said post-match. “When you have to defend, you defend. I cannot play samba when they play rock and roll.”
Indeed, Ghana had almost zero interest in attacking. Queiroz acknowledged that the goal was to spend the first 45 minutes frustrating England, and that meant a deep low block, 11 men behind the ball, and no spaces on the outside. Sure, England were allowed to have possession, but only in wide areas or at the halfway line.
The result was something similar to those of the bad days of England teams past: Slow, lifeless and lacking in ideas. England looked afraid to take risks in a bid to get the game won.
