England’s place in the last 32 of the World Cup has been confirmed — not by their own efforts, but by results elsewhere. Uruguay’s defeat to Spain, coupled with Cape Verde’s draw with Saudi Arabia, left Marcelo Bielsa’s side in third in Group H and with an inferior record to Thomas Tuchel’s team. With third-placed South Korea, Senegal and Scotland already unable to match England’s points tally, that was enough to confirm progression.
The Three Lions will face Panama in their final group game on Saturday, already knowing a knockout spot is secured. But Tuchel warned that Panama could deploy a “back seven” as England prepare for another defensive block, four days after a frustrating 0-0 draw against Ghana. “We will face another deep block in another kind of formation,” Tuchel said. “We now see a back five. For many moments in the match, we will see a back six, a back seven.”
“England qualify for World Cup last 32 after Uruguay exit; Tuchel warns of Panama defensive block.”
The German boss admitted he has yet to find the “recipe” for breaking down teams who park the bus. “I haven’t found the recipe where, ‘They do this, then we do this and then we are fine’,” he said. “Normally, we try to overload parts and areas and then accelerate quickly in this moment of overload. There was no overload against Ghana. There will very likely be no overload against Panama.”
Despite the security of last-32 qualification, Tuchel’s side will want a victory against the Central Americans to confirm top spot in Group L, which would mean a tie against a yet-to-be-confirmed third-placed team. A draw or defeat could push them into second or even third, raising the possibility of a far trickier knockout tie.
England will be without Reece James for the Panama game and the last-32 tie. The right-back reported tightness after the draw against Ghana and has a hamstring injury. Tuchel, however, said he is confident against any opponent. “I’m not scared in general,” he said. “We feel confident enough to be ready and compete on any level.”
Uruguay’s exit was sealed after a costly error by Fernando Muslera led to their defeat by Spain, who topped the group. The result also gave hope to Scotland, who finished third in Group C with three points and -3 goal difference. Scotland’s fate is out of their hands, but Spain’s win over Uruguay kept their slim hopes alive. Scotland need at least four results to go their way, with a wait until Sunday and the conclusion of Group J’s fixtures.