England will launch their bid to end a 60-year World Cup title drought on Wednesday when they open Group L play in Arlington, Texas, against a veteran Croatian group looking to run it back one more time.
England’s German manager Thomas Tuchel surprised many when his 26-man squad left off players like Manchester City’s Phil Foden, Chelsea’s Cole Palmer, Manchester United’s Harry Maguire and Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold.
But it’s hard to doubt the former Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Dortmund manager’s judgment after he guided the Three Lions to a perfect 8-0-0 record in their qualifying group.
Veteran midfielder Jordan Henderson, who will be turning 36 on matchday, is among the believers that Tuchel’s selections will lead to strong team chemistry, even if he doesn’t expect it to be as smooth a ride as qualifying.
“There will be tough moments in tournaments, especially in the World Cup,” Henderson said, per Reuters. “It’s never going to go your way all the time. There’s going to be tough moments where you have to dig in, and the closer you are together as a group, the easier that’ll be.
“I feel like we’re in a good place. It’s just about getting that first game going, and for us it’s about showing everyone in the world how good we can be.”
England are meeting Croatia for a fourth time in a major tournament since 2004. And while the Three Lions won the two European Championship encounters, it was Croatia who edged England 2-1 in extra time of their 2018 World Cup semifinal.
That marked the height of Croatia’s footballing history since gaining independence from the former Yugoslavia and making their tournament debut at the 1996 Euros.
Yet the Luka Modric-led group again reached the semifinals in 2022 before falling to eventual champions Argentina.
Modric, who will be playing in his fifth World Cup after his domestic season for AC Milan came to an abrupt end in April due to a broken cheekbone, is two caps away from his 200th for his country.
“The greatest strength of Croatia in recent editions of the World Cup has always been unity, and it must be like that this time as well,” Modric told Goal.com. “We are not here to participate, to act as an extra. When the group is compact, we can compete with anyone.”
The 40-year-old Modric, 37-year-old Ivan Perisic and 34-year-old Andrej Kramaric are still critical for this version of the Balkans’ best side.
But there is an opportunity for a new influence at striker. Of the three candidates, only the 34-year-old Ante Budimir has played in a World Cup match before, and that was off the bench. FC Dallas’ Petar Musa and SC Freiburg’s Igor Matanovic are the other options.
–Group K: Portugal vs. DR Congo in Houston: Cristiano Ronaldo is set to begin his sixth World Cup at age 41. First up, a DR Congo side in only its second all-time World Cup showing, the previous coming as Zaire in 1974.
–Group L: Ghana vs. Panama in Toronto: This will be seen as a must-win for both sides, who will be considerable underdogs in their latter group matches against Croatia and England. And unless a last-minute immigration appeal comes through, Ghana will be without 33-year-old midfielder Thomas Partey.
–Group K: Uzbekistan vs. Colombia in Mexico City: The Uzbeks will be the fourth and final side to make their World Cup debut at this tournament. Meanwhile, Colombia hope the 34-year-old James Rodriguez can reprise his exceptional national team play for one more tournament.
