England unable to break down Ghana in Boston stalemate

With temperatures in Boston far more comfortable than at home across the Atlantic, England were able to establish a rhythm which saw Ghana hardly get a touch of the ball in the opening stages. Carlos Queiroz’s side were happy to sit back and attempt the kind of heist which saw them beat Panama in their opener, frustrating their opponents despite Declan Rice firing just over from distance.

The Arsenal midfielder also headed over the top later in the half, but chances were truly in short supply for the Three Lions. Ghana finally started to impose themselves just before the break, but ultimately went without even registering a shot, making it nine successive matches without a first-half goal for the Black Stars. And the game hardly exploded with goalmouth action after the interval either, with Anthony Gordon finally registering the contest’s first shot on target with a tame effort into the clutches of Benjamin Asare.

Ghana did start to have some joy with their direct play after that, while England’s substitutions injected some creativity, but it wasn’t until the final 10 minutes that the game had any real openings.

Prince Kwabena Adu raced through alongside Antoine Semenyo, only for Jordan Pickford to rush out and smother the danger, but the best opportunity for either side was yet to come. Asare had just touched wide Bukayo Saka’s shot when the winger’s delivery was headed onto the bar by Nico O’Reilly, before Harry Kane smashed over on the rebound.

After their stoic shutout of the Three Lions, Ghana remain among just a handful of sides still not to have conceded in this WC, though England didn’t show close to the cutting edge they did in their 4-2 win over Croatia on matchday one.

Though four points will likely be enough for qualification in most groups, there are still no guarantees ahead of tonight’s later Group L clash between Panama and Croatia.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Marc Guehi (England)

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