England can take full control of Group L by taking a victory over Ghana at Boston Stadium on Tuesday.
The match starts at 4 p.m., and fans can watch it on Boston 25/FOX.
Key Points
- England, seeking their second World Cup title (and first since 1966), won their first game 4-2 against Croatia last Wednesday.
- England coach Thomas Tuchel has faced criticism for his roster choices, accused of leaving established stars at home. That said, he has a stacked team, with players representing heavyweight clubs across England, Germany, and Spain.
- The phrase following England is “it’s coming home,” reference to the long wait to bring a title back to the country that invented the modern game. A 1996 song called “Three Lions” further popularized the phrase.
- Ghana opened the World Cup with a 1-0 win over Panama and have qualified for five of the last six World Cups.
- Ghana are a highly respected team, known for tight games and competitiveness. They established an international reputation by knocking USA out of consecutive World Cups (2006, 2010) and coming very close to reaching the semifinals in 2010.
Players To Watch
- Literally every England player has extremely high quality, but the player to watch is Harry Kane, England’s all time leading scorer (81 goals) who also scored twice in the opener against Croatia. He and Tom Brady are also friends and he is very eager to play at Boston Stadium.
- He’s had an 11-year career playing for England and is the team captain.
- 34-year-old striker Jordan Ayew is Ghana’s leading scorer (34 goals).
Local Connections
- Another note on Kane and Brady: As an academy player at Tottenham, he took inspiration from the documentary “The Brady 6,” which chronicled Tom Brady’s rise despite being selected in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. Kane, who was unsure of his chances of playing for the first team, went on to become a symbol of Tottenham and is a friend of Brady’s. Now at German powerhouse Bayern Munich, Kane was last season’s leading scorer in Europe. But, he has yet to win a title for club or country.
Quick Pitch Points
- Team Nicknames: England are the Three Lions, Ghana are the Black Stars
- Odds: England -500, Ghana +1200, Draw +600 | O/U 2.5 -161, +140
- Best World Cup finish: England won in 1966, Ghana reached the 2010 quarterfinals.
- Coaches: England, Thomas Tuchel; Ghana, Carlos Quieroz
- Captains: England, Harry Kane; Ghana, Jordan Ayew
- FIFA Rank: England, 4; Ghana 65
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