Bellingham shines again and Rashford seals the win as Thomas Tuchel’s England opens its World Cup campaign with an entertaining victory over Croatia.
England passed its first major test of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with flying colors, defeating Croatia 4-2 in a pulsating Group L opener at Dallas Stadium.
Thomas Tuchel’s side confirmed its status as one of the tournament favorites thanks to another clinical performance from Harry Kane, who scored twice, while Jude Bellingham rediscovered his best form with a decisive second-half goal. Marcus Rashford came off the bench to put the game beyond doubt late on.
For Croatia, despite the defeat, there were encouraging signs from the younger generation. Petar Sučić and Martin Baturina were lively throughout, but Luka Modrić endured a difficult evening and was unable to dictate the tempo as he has done so often in the past.
England almost found the breakthrough immediately, but the opening goal arrived in controversial fashion after twelve minutes. Modrić hesitated while trying to clear the ball inside his own penalty area and was beaten by Noni Madueke, forcing referee Clément Turpin to award a penalty. Harry Kane saw his initial effort saved by Dominik Livaković, but the Croatian goalkeeper had moved off his line too early. Given a second opportunity, the Bayern Munich striker calmly converted to make it 1-0.
Croatia responded impressively and equalized in the 36th minute. Sučić combined brilliantly with Baturina, who unleashed a precise effort from outside the box that beat Jordan Pickford and nestled into the far corner.
England restored its lead six minutes later. Declan Rice delivered a dangerous corner and Kane escaped his markers before powering a header beyond Livaković for his second goal of the evening.
Yet Croatia refused to go away. Deep into first-half stoppage time, Ivan Perišić produced a clever flick inside the penalty area, setting up Musa for a spectacular volley that sent the teams into halftime level at 2-2.
England regained control almost immediately after the restart. Only two minutes into the second half, Bellingham burst through the Croatian defense, taking advantage of poor positioning from Luka Vušković before finishing confidently to put the Three Lions back in front.
Tuchel’s side managed the tempo better during the second half, although Croatia continued to threaten and searched for another equalizer through changes from the bench.
The decisive blow came five minutes from time. Bukayo Saka led a rapid counterattack and fed Rashford inside the area. The Manchester United forward shifted onto his right foot, wrong-footed Josip Stanišić and curled a composed finish past Livaković to seal a 4-2 victory.
England’s convincing performance sends an early message to the rest of the tournament and puts the Three Lions in pole position to top Group L. Croatia, meanwhile, will need a positive response in its next match to avoid falling behind in the race for qualification.
Match Report: England 4-2 Croatia
Goals: 12′ Penalty Kane (ENG), 36′ Baturina (CRO), 42′ Kane (ENG), 45+5′ Musa (CRO), 47′ Bellingham (ENG), 85′ Rashford (ENG)
England (4-2-3-1): Pickford; James, Stones (87′ Guehi), Konsa, O’Reilly; Anderson, Rice (72′ Rogers); Madueke (72′ Saka), Bellingham (80′ Spence), Gordon (72′ Rashford); Kane.
Head Coach: Thomas Tuchel
Croatia (3-4-2-1): Livaković; Šutalo, Vušković (66′ Marko Pašalić), Gvardiol; Stanišić, Sučić, Modrić (58′ Kovačić), Perišić; Baturina (79′ Vlašić), Mario Pašalić (79′ Kramarić); Musa (66′ Matanović).
Head Coach: Zlatko Dalić
Referee: Clément Turpin (France)
Yellow Cards: None
Red Cards: None
Venue: Dallas Stadium, Arlington, Texas – FIFA World Cup 2026 Group L
