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- TV & Streaming Guide: How to watch England vs Croatia tonight
- Opposition Scout: Check out the full Croatia World Cup squad here
Over to you, then, Herr Tuchel. The German enters a debut major tournament with England – the Three Lions’ first without Gareth Southgate in the dugout since Euro 2016 – with huge expectations on his shoulders.
The former Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich gaffer got an initial short-term gig, since extended to 2028, to take the good vibes and sense of pride instilled by Southgate, and add street smarts and tactical mastery. The goal? Well, actually win this damn thing.
England were the first European nation to qualify for the World Cup and will be one of the favourites – but one of the most complete squads in the tournament will not be without its fair share of high-profile omissions.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luke Shaw and Lewis Hall miss out at full-back, while Harry Maguire has been left at home, too, at centre-back, along with Adam Wharton, Jarrod Bowen, Conor Gallagher, Levi Colwill and Trevoh Chalobah.
Ivan Toney is a surprise pick among the forwards, Jordan Henderson will make history as he heads to a seventh tournament with his country, and faith has been placed in the likes of Dan Burn, Noni Madueke, Jarrel Quansah and Tino Livramento, who all head to their first international tournaments.
Despite the ease of qualification, England's March internationals were a time for experimentation, as the Three Lions slumped to defeat against Japan and failed to overcome Uruguay.
The pressure is on for Tuchel, who may have left himself open to criticism with this selection.
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Mood
That belief has only strengthened following England’s perfect qualifying campaign: eight wins from eight, 22 goals scored, none conceded. The latter statistic makes them the only qualifier to reach the USA, Mexico and Canada without conceding even once – a remarkable statistic, especially given England’s defence is arguably their weakest facet. Jordan Pickford may be jittery when making 15-yard passes around his own box, but a fifth major tournament is proof of the 32-year-old goalkeeper’s No.1 status.
Tuchel’s defining tweak so far has been Elliot Anderson’s emergence as his midfield fulcrum. The Nottingham Forest anchor man made his debut in a 2-0 win against Andorra last September and has since nailed down his spot next to Declan Rice. Anderson’s positional awareness, workrate and tidy passing allow Rice to maraud, which gives the Three Lions greater balance at both ends of the pitch.
Tuchel also appears to have solved the great head scratcher over who to select as England’s No.10 – Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden or Cole Palmer – by, erm, playing Morgan Rogers instead. The decision may have been initially foisted upon him by injury, but it’s further evidence of Tuchel’s defiant streak and ability to find wily solutions that the former Lincoln loanee seems likely to keep the shirt.
England are once again among the bookies’ favourites to lift the World Cup, despite a yawning 60-year gap since their last major men’s success. Croatia, Ghana and Panama could prove tough assignments in the group stage, especially given the uncomfortable heat and humidity awaiting across the Atlantic. Forget the No.10 issue – the factor 50 is much more relevant.
Semi-finalists in 2018, quarter-finalists in 2022 and twice European runners-up – it really is win or bust this time.
Squad
England World Cup 2026 squad
- GK: Jordan Pickford (Everton)
- GK: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace)
- GK: James Trafford (Manchester City)
- DF: Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa)
- DF: Nico O'Reilly (Manchester City)
- DF: John Stones (Manchester City)
- DF: Marc Guehi (Manchester City)
- DF: Trevoh Chalobah (Chelsea)*
- DF: Dan Burn (Newcastle United)
- DF: Reece James (Chelsea)
- DF: Djed Spence (Tottenham Hotspur)
- DF: Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen)
- MF: Declan Rice (Arsenal)
- MF: Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest)
- MF: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
- MF: Jordan Henderson (Brentford)
- MF: Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United)
- MF: Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa)
- MF: Eberechi Eze (Arsenal)
- FW: Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
- FW: Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)
- FW: Marcus Rashford (Barcelona)
- FW: Anthony Gordon (Barcelona)
- FW: Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
- FW: Noni Madueke (Arsenal)
- FW: Ivan Toney (Al-Ahli)
*Replaced the injured Tino Livramento (Newcastle United)
What has Thomas Tuchel said about England's World Cup 2026 squad?
On his squad for the World Cup:
"The squad has a significant number of players that will compete for starting minutes and starting places, that also gives us the chance to rotate on a high level and a significant number of players who carry the sportive responsibility on the highest level.
"We have a huge chunk of youthfulness in the squad. We have six players who have won titles with the under-21s. We have Kobbie, who is still young and has won his titles, we have Nico O'Reilly on top who is young and already won his medals.
"We have specialists with us, specialists for all kinds of different scenarios, when we are leading, when we are chasing a game, a result. We've always said we want to be a strong set-piece team, so we have specialists for that and we want to be a strong penalty team, we have specialists for that."
On leaving players at home:
"I am very confident in the group that we chose of which we arrive with. Very difficult decisions, painful conversations. Difficult for the players, difficult to explain to the players.
"What we’re trying to achieve as a team and we try to nominate a balanced squad. If everyone is selected, it was a given that from these 55 players, we have to leave some extraordinary talents, some extraordinary personalities at home."
On the shock selection of Ivan Toney:
"We could see that he still collects the numbers, I think he has very special skills that could help us, the situations, scenarios when we are chasing a result. I think he can be a very valuable addition to Harry Kane, he can be present in the box when we are pushing for a goal.
"He can take attention off other strikers, he has a natural presence within the box, he is a natural finisher, he can help us with set pieces, he is very strong in there. Very good in using his body and not to forget, he is a world class penalty taker. He ticks some boxes that we wanted to be ticked."
England results and next games
Fixtures
- June 6, 2026: England 1-0 New Zealand, Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, United States
- June 10, 2026: England 3-0 Costa Rica, Inter&Co Stadium Orlando, United States
- June 17, 2026: England vs Croatia, AT&T Stadium, Arlington, United States
- June 23, 2026: England vs Ghana, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, United States
- June 27, 2026: Panama vs England, MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, United States
- September 26, 2026: England vs Spain, Wembley Stadium, London, England
- September 29, 2026: Czech Republic vs England, Fortuna Arena, Prague, Czech Republic
- October 3, 2026: Croatia vs England, Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb, Croatia
- October 6, 2026: England vs Czech Republic, Wembley Stadium, London, England
- November 12, 2026: England vs Croatia, Wembley Stadium, London, England
- November 15, 2026: Spain vs England, Venue TBC, Spain
England's World Cup kick-off times
Date | Round | Fixture | UK Kick-Off Time (BST) |
|---|---|---|---|
Wednesday 17 June | Group Stage | England vs Croatia | 9:00pm |
Tuesday 23 June | Group Stage | England vs Ghana | 9:00pm |
Saturday 27 June | Group Stage | Panama vs England | 10:00pm |
England World Cup 2026 Schedule: Fixtures, Dates & Kick-Off Times
- March 31, 2026: England 0-1 Japan, Wembley Stadium, London, England
- March 27, 2026: England 1-1 Uruguay, Wembley Stadium, London, England
- November 16, 2025: Albania 0-2 England, Arena Kombetare, Tirana, Albania
- November 13, 2025: England 2-0 Serbia, Wembley Stadium, London, England
- October 14, 2025: Latvia 0-5 England, Daugava Stadium, Riga, Latvia
- October 9, 2025: England 3-0 Wales, Wembley Stadium, London, England
- September 9, 2025: Serbia 0-5 England, Rajko Mitic Stadium, Belgrade, Serbia
- September 6, 2025: England 2-0 Andorra, Villa Park, Birmingham, England
- June 10, 2025: England 1-3 Senegal, City Ground, Nottingham, England
- June 7, 2025: Andorra 0-1 England, RCDE Stadium, Barcelona, Spain
- March 24, 2025: England 3-0 Latvia, City Ground, Nottingham, England
- March 21, 2025: England 2-0 Albania, Wembley Stadium, London, England
Group L standings
England are in Group L at World Cup 2026.
England manager: Thomas Tuchel
Former Mainz, Borussia Dortmund, PSG, Chelsea and Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel is trying his hand at international football for the first time with a reputation for burning briefly and brightly at the highest level of the club game.
England qualified for the World Cup without little fuss but Tuchel's squad selections since the turn of the year have raised a few eyebrows. In March, he named 35 players for games against Uruguay and Japan that didn't seem to get him any closer to finding a viable plan for the big games this summer.
His final 26-man squad for the World Cup is more noteworthy for its omissions than its inclusions.
The proof of the pudding will be in the eating and there are individual justifications for most of the players who've been left out, but a disappointing showing in the United States would inevitably put the spotlight back on those decisions.
England's star player
Harry Kane
The England skipper finally got his hands on the first trophy of his career last season, helping Bayern Munich to the Bundesliga title with a superb 26 goals and 10 assists in 31 league appearances.
Kane, who is ranked at no.1 in FourFourTwo's list of the best strikers in the world right now, has a massive part to play for England as he looks to tick off another major career milestone at next year's World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the USA.
With 112 caps and 78 goals to his name already for the Three Lions, and will be hoping to boost both tallies as Tuchel's side aim for their first World Cup triumph since 1966.
Predicted Starting XI
Tuchel has made his squad selection choices and presumably most of his starting line-up decisions too. Here's what we think he might have in mind.
England Predicted XI vs Croatia (4-2-3-1): Pickford; James, Stones, Guehi, O'Reilly; Anderson, Rice; Saka, Rogers, Gordon; Kane.
