England are heavy favourites to top Group L, and Ghana are ranked 74th in the world, with a recent run of form that includes defeats to Austria and Germany in March friendlies. On paper, this should be comfortable.
With England vs Ghana betting reflecting that expectation, the reality of tournament football has a habit of complicating the straightforward, and there are genuine reasons why Thomas Tuchel’s side should not take the Black Stars lightly when the sides meet on 17 June.
Carlos Queiroz
Ghana appointed the 73-year-old Portuguese tactician in April, just weeks before the tournament, describing it himself as the biggest challenge of his 43-year coaching career. The brevity of his preparation time is a concern, but his World Cup pedigree is almost unmatched.
Queiroz will become only the second manager in history to coach at five consecutive World Cups, equalling Bora Milutinovic’s record. He led South Africa to qualification in 2002, guided Portugal to the round of 16 in 2010, and managed Iran at three successive tournaments, most notably in 2022 when his side beat Wales before losing 6-2 to England in the group stage.
He knows exactly how to organise a side defensively at World Cup level, and he knows England specifically. Tuchel’s side will not be facing an unknown quantity in the dugout.
Antoine Semenyo
Semenyo has been one of the Premier League’s standout performers this season, contributing 17 goals and seven assists in the top flight for Bournemouth and Manchester City. His direct running, physical presence, and capacity to beat defenders in wide areas make him one of the most difficult forwards to contain in the division, and his output this season places him among the league’s most productive wide players.
England’s full-backs, whichever combination Tuchel selects, will face a sustained physical examination from a player who has spent the season testing the best defensive units in the Premier League. Semenyo arrives at his first World Cup in the form of his career, and that combination of quality and occasion could produce something dangerous.
Brandon Thomas-Asante
Less heralded than Semenyo, but a player with the physical profile and directness to cause problems in a different way. Thomas-Asante scored 13 goals and contributed four assists in 30 Championship appearances for Championship champions Coventry City this season, a return that places him in the top percentile of the division for non-penalty expected goals per 90 minutes.
He offers Ghana a powerful, combative option through the centre, a striker who leads the line with energy and competes for every ball. His ability to bring others into play and hold up possession under pressure gives Ghana a focal point that Queiroz can build his attacking structure around, and England’s centre-backs will face a specific physical challenge they cannot afford to underestimate.
Tournament football is unpredictable
Ghana’s recent friendly results, including a concerning 5-1 defeat to Austria, have done nothing to inspire confidence, and their 74th-place ranking reflects a squad that has struggled for consistency.
But, World Cup group stage football has its own logic, and the history of the tournament is littered with sides who underperformed in preparation and delivered on the day. World Cup odds reflect England as comfortable favourites to progress from this group, and that assessment is almost certainly correct.
But a Ghana side organised by a manager with Queiroz’s experience, with Semenyo and Thomas-Asante capable of exploiting any defensive lapse, and with the motivation of a nation that has never progressed beyond the round of 16 burning behind them, represents a more credible threat than the rankings or recent form suggest. England have been caught out by lesser opponents in easier circumstances before. Tuchel will know better than to look past them.
Article written by Ryan Miller
