Roy Keane and Gary Neville’s wild punditry shows why neither made it as a manager
Roy Keane and Gary Neville’s wild punditry shows why neither made it as a manager
Jason BurtSun, June 28, 2026 at 12:51 AM UTC
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Roy Keane compared England to Scotland while Gary Neville wanted Ivan Toney to come on - ITV
England beat Panama 2-0 on Saturday night after goals from Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane ensured Thomas Tuchel’s side won Group L ahead of Croatia.
Following a worrying first half at MetLife Stadium – the New Jersey venue that will host the Word Cup final on July 19 – pundits in the ITV studio were critical of England’s approach. During the second half, however, Bellingham and Kane silenced the critics.
Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka impressed, while Bellingham benefitted from having Morgan Rogers start alongside him. Telegraph Sport learnt plenty more besides.
Learning the importance of patience
It was not the greatest first half from England. Although, by the end, it was an object lesson in the need for patience against an obdurate opponent who defended well and posed a threat of their own. What else do we expect from a World Cup? Nations are here for a reason and are not just going to roll over. And England carried far more threat than against Ghana.
Some of the takes from the TV pundits at half-time were pretty wild with Roy Keane lambasting England, saying they were lacking quality “like Scotland”. As was Gary Neville’s demand for Thomas Tuchel to throw on Ivan Toney. It is easy to see why neither of those two cut it in management.
The issue for England is whether the failure to score an early goal causes anxiety. Certainly the period after the first hydration break and up to half-time was not good enough and it looked like even Tuchel was affected as he altered Jude Bellingham’s position, pushing him further forward. For a while that seemed to unbalance England and make them a bit desperate and vulnerable.
But it must be remembered that a game is not defined by a first half or even half a first half. In the end England held their nerve and were worthy winners. It was an example of not diving into snap judgments or demanding changes are made for the sake of them.
Rashford made his point and must start
So that is that settled. England’s best two options for the wing positions are Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka. We knew Tuchel had earmarked this game to bring back Saka as he nursed him through his Achilles problem, and he provided far more threat than his Arsenal team-mate Noni Madueke – even if the latter should have scored when he came on. But that contest was never in doubt.
On the left it is far more competitive. Or should have been. Tuchel had suggested Rashford made more impact from the bench and that appeared to have fired him up to disprove that point. He did just that even if, at times, his decision-making was awry, especially with some of his crosses after finding space in threatening positions.
But this was night and day to the cautious approach taken by Anthony Gordon, who, tellingly, remained amongst the substitutes as Rashford played the whole 90 minutes. Whereas Gordon failed to take on his marker against both Croatia and Ghana, Rashford was far more aggressive.
Tuchel had also talked about the left side of England’s team not working and it was interesting that they attacked far more frequently down that flank with quick passes to try to release Rashford, especially in the first half.
Rashford, 28, was unfortunate not to score in that period. He cut inside and forced a smart save and he went close with a header over the crossbar. But overall he did enough to keep his place.
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The intelligence of Rogers
Bellingham collected the headlines after winning the match for England with a goal and an assist. Just wrap him in cotton-wool. Tuchel did that by substituting him during the second hydration break when the result was no longer in doubt.
But do not underestimate the contribution of his friend Morgan Rogers. The two are desperate to play together although whether the right balance can be found with Tuchel’s – eventual – decision to use them as two No 10s is a moot point. Against better opposition this will leave England even more vulnerable in midfield to the counter-attack.
The work done by Morgan Rogers (right) gave his childhood friend Jude Bellingham the time and space to flourish - Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
But Rogers’s intelligence and his ability to pick the right moment to press, plus his selflessness in possession, should not be underestimated. He covered a lot of the work that allowed Bellingham to thrive.
So here is the conundrum for Tuchel. He rested Declan Rice – and will certainly bring him back for the round-of-32 tie – but can he get him, Elliot Anderson (who again did well), Rogers and Bellingham in the same team. The most likely outcome is to leave out Rogers. If that happens he will be unlucky. But he will continue to be an important player for England at this World Cup.
The defensive headache
England were fragile on the counter-attack and Tuchel will try and remedy that by bringing back Rice. But he will be alarmed at how easily Panama broke to create chances. Even when the game was won, England were far too open and that was highlighted in the alarming way they cut through and scored in injury-time, although it was ruled out for offside. Jordan Pickford was angry. He gave a mouthful to substitutes Jordan Henderson and Djed Spence.
The difficulty was how exposed England’s formation left Anderson once Tuchel had taken the decision to push Bellingham further forward from his starting position as a No 8. Tuchel will feel vindicated by the result, the nature of the goals and the clean sheet, but it will not work against better opposition.
And that is without mentioning the fact that England are now looking exposed in defence with – it appears – yet another injury. Tuchel had tried to deal with the changes by effectively playing a back three, with Jarell Quansah on the right and Nico O’Reilly moving into midfield from the left-back position. But losing Quansah appeared to make them even more unbalanced.
There are no easy games in international football
Well, maybe there are still some. But Panama are not the team that England overwhelmed 6-1 in the 2018 World Cup.
Panama have come a long way since then and although they exit this tournament without a point and without scoring a goal they have proved to be highly competitive. “Just another example that there’s no easy games in the World Cup,” Anthony Barry, Tuchel’s assistant, declared in his half-time interview and that was not an excuse. Do not forget in this World Cup we have had: Spain 0 Cape Verde 0, Qatar 1 Switzerland 1, Portugal 1 Democratic Republic of Congo 0 and even a goalless draw between Belgium and Iran.
And the first three of those “minnows” are below Panama – 43rd– in the Fifa rankings. Tuchel had claimed Group L, England’s group, was the toughest and although it never felt like that was the case, it is true in terms of rankings.
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