Tuchel convinced of English progress after victory over Panama
England qualified as group winners for the knockout stages of the 2026 World Cup by beating Panama 2-0. Thomas Tuchel expects his side to improve in the next round, while Harry Kane continues to break goalscoring records.
England have qualified as group winners for the knockout stages of the 2026 World Cup after a difficult but deserved 2-0 victory over Panama in New York. National coach Thomas Tuchel sees enough prospects for his team: "We did what was necessary. It was a tough match against a physically strong opponent. We were the only team that created so many chances and managed to score twice. Now the tournament starts again in the knockout phase, and I am sure we will grow."
In a game in which England were not at their best - the 17 goal attempts only yielded an xG of 1.4 - Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane in particular took the lead. Bellingham opened the scoring and provided the assist five minutes later with which Kane determined the final score. This achievement also makes Bellingham (22 years and 363 days) the youngest English player ever, since 1966, to score and provide an assist in a single World Cup match.
England finished at the top of the group for the second World Cup in a row and achieved the highest number ever in the group stage with seven points, equal to 2006 and 2022. Tuchel emphasizes the importance of team feeling and confidence: "The big matches are coming now. We are gathering our strength and energy, because the bigger the challenge, the bigger we become as a team."
There was a personal highlight for Harry Kane: with his goal he reached the historic number of 11 World Cup goals and is now the all-time top scorer for England at the global final tournament, surpassing Gary Lineker (10). The fact that he also scored four times against Panama is unique in English history. Kane himself remains down-to-earth: "This is something to be proud of. The World Cup is the biggest competition for us as professional football players. Now I mainly want to enjoy the moment and celebrate with the team that we have become group winners. Hopefully there will be more milestones in this tournament."
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