Thomas Tuchel’s England side closed out preparation for this World Cup with a 3-0 win over Costa Rica, a clear step up from a scrappier 1-0 victory against New Zealand in the previous friendly. The improvement matters given what’s waiting on the other side of kickoff.
Croatia ended England’s run at the 2018 World Cup, and Wednesday’s group stage opener in Texas puts the two sides back on the same pitch with a very different set of stakes attached. England arrives with a perfect qualifying record and sixty years of unfinished business hanging over the tournament.
Tuchel has had selection headaches in multiple areas of the pitch heading into kickoff, and Wednesday is when those decisions stop being theoretical.
The Predicted XI
Jordan Pickford starts in goal, with Harry Kane leading the line as captain, the two least complicated calls on the team sheet. The rest of the lineup carries far more debate behind it.
Tuchel is expected to go with Reece James and Nico O’Reilly as the full-backs, Marc Guehi and John Stones at center-back, and a double pivot of Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson in midfield. Jude Bellingham gets the No. 10 role, with Anthony Gordon on the left and Bukayo Saka, fitness permitting, on the right.
That’s eleven names with real questions attached to at least four of them.
Full Predicted XI:
- Jordan Pickford
- Nico O’Reilly
- Marc Guehi
- John Stones
- Reece James
- Declan Rice
- Elliott Anderson
- Jude Bellingham
- Bukayo Saka
- Harry Kane
- Anthony Gordon
Stones and Guehi Likely Get the Nod for England
The center-back picture has shifted over the past few weeks. Ezri Konsa received more playing time under Tuchel than almost anyone besides Kane and Pickford, building a real case for a starting role. Despite that, Guehi looks set to partner Stones at kickoff, with Stones’ tournament experience winning out even as his injury history remains something to monitor through the group stage.
The battle for the No. 10 shirt came down to Bellingham against Morgan Rogers, and the debate has stretched across most of the buildup to this tournament. Bellingham’s range and his habit of adjusting his game to whatever a match demands ultimately gave him the edge.
GettyEngland’s German head coach Thomas Tuchel gives an MD-1 press conference at the Dallas Stadium in Arlington on June 16, 2026, on the eve of the 2026 World Cup Group L football match between England and Croatia. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP via Getty Images)
Final Word for England
The wait is almost over.
Wednesday doesn’t settle anything on its own. But a team with this much depth at its disposal, capable of fielding strong cases at nearly every position, gives England a real foundation heading into the tournament.
The Croatia game will tell its own story. The bigger one is whether Tuchel’s selection headaches turn into the kind of problem every successful team eventually wants to have.
That’s the story worth watching as this World Cup unfolds.
England Starting XI vs. Croatia: Predicted Lineup for World Cup Opener