By Opta Analyst | Created at 2026-07-18 17:28:13 | Updated at 2026-08-03 07:01:20
2 weeks ago
England have reached only their fourth ever men’s World Cup semi-final. How did they do it? We look at six takeaways from their victory in Miami.
When England stumbled to a 0-0 draw against Ghana in their second game of the 2026 World Cup, few would have foreseen them making it as far as the semi-finals.
That’s exactly what has happened, though, with Thomas Tuchel now just two games away from potentially bringing football ‘home’ and ending 60 years of hurt.
Their 2-1 comeback victory over Norway owed plenty to Jude Bellingham, but England got the job done and advanced to the final four.
It wasn’t a classic Three Lions performance in Miami on Saturday, as Tuchel himself openly admitted after the game, but tournament football is all about winning, and thanks to Bellingham, that’s what England did.
Norway were always likely to be a tricky opponent, with Erling Haaland in their ranks and coming off the back of an impressive win over Brazil in the last 16, and things didn’t look any simpler for England when Andreas Schjelderup scored from what was almost certainly a mis-hit cross in the 36th minute.
However, Bellingham has made a habit of stepping up in big moments at this World Cup, and his forceful run and finish in first-half stoppage time levelled things.
A tight game went into extra-time, and less than three minutes into the extra 30, Bellingham scored again, following up when Ørjan Nyland fumbled a shot from Morgan Rogers.
That was enough for England to qualify for their fourth men’s World Cup semi-final (after 1966, 1990 and 2018), setting up a meeting with old foes Argentina in Atlanta on Wednesday.
What can we take away from their latest performance, though? We’ve looked at six things that might give us a clue about how far they can go in North America.
Are England Actually Good?
In short, yes, they are. You simply cannot reach a World Cup semi-final without being good.
But it would also be fair to say that England have not exactly swept aside all before them like, for example, France largely have at this tournament. England have been winning wars of attrition rather than outplaying anyone, but there is also something to be said for that.
“We got lucky,” Tuchel told ITV Sport after the game. “We made life very, very difficult for ourselves. The result is fantastic. We are in the last four. It’s amazing but [I am] not happy with the performance, in every sense.
“We made life difficult for us in the way we played and how we played – sloppy, a lot of technical mistakes, not fast enough, not repetitive enough.”
Of course, the high stakes and nerves of a World Cup quarter-final can often have a strange effect on usually competent players, but it was somewhat concerning for England that Bellingham’s first goal was one of just two shots on target they had inside the first 90 minutes.
They also ceded control of the game as it wore on. England had 67.7% possession in the first half in Miami, but only 44% in the second half, then 43.1% in the first half of extra-time, followed by a measly 27.1% in the second half of extra-time, though obviously, game state will have been a factor. And, of course, possession isn’t everything, but it did seem to irk the England boss.
This was not the first time Tuchel had openly criticised his own team at this World Cup. The German clearly has the highest of standards, and even though his words seemed to rub Bellingham up the wrong way after he learned that his manager wasn’t happy with the performance, that fire and high bar could be the thing England have been missing from recent tournaments when they have gone far but ultimately come away empty-handed.
Have England Improved Defensively?
One of the key talking points about England during the group stage was that their defence didn’t look up to the very high standards that World Cup winners usually require.
They threw away a lead twice against Croatia in their first game before eventually winning 4-2, gave up good opportunities against Ghana and Panama despite ultimately keeping clean sheets in both games, and then conceded early on against DR Congo in the last 32. The African side gave England all sorts of problems, even though Harry Kane’s brace completed a comeback win.
They conceded twice against Mexico in the last 16, but that was in difficult circumstances, playing the co-hosts in the Estadio Azteca. They were also forced to hang on for most of the second half with 10 men after Jarell Quansah was sent off, and some frankly heroic defending eventually sealed a 3-2 victory.
Norway was a different challenge, but despite sometimes appearing to be too passive and open, the only goal they conceded came from what was almost certainly a mis-hit cross, while England only allowed their opponents one big chance (a chance from which the attacking team would reasonably be expected to score). There was, however, also a disallowed Norway goal, too.
That was despite facing Haaland, who came into the game having scored in 14 consecutive competitive games for Norway. This was his first failure to find the net for his country since a UEFA Nations League game against Austria in October 2024.
636 – England are the first team to keep Erling Haaland from scoring in a competitive international match since Austria on 13th October 2024 (636 days ago).
Shackled. pic.twitter.com/0xN2VJQvDD
England have played so many different players in their backline, which is far from ideal, but despite some wobbly moments, John Stones recovered in a rare outing for him, while Ezri Konsa looked as solid at right-back as any of the other players to have been crowbarred in there in this tournament.
Dan Burn again came off the bench to do what he was brought to the World Cup to do. In two short cameos against Mexico and Norway, the gigantic Newcastle United centre-back made nine clearances.
Going back to big chances, England have allowed seven in total at this World Cup, fewer than tournament favourites France (eight). Spain and Argentina have allowed five each.
Facing Lionel Messi, Julián Alvarez and co. will be another big test, but England are increasingly showing that they can stand up to pressure better than people perhaps gave them credit for just a few weeks ago.
Handling Momentum Shifts
There has been a lot of talk about momentum at this World Cup, especially with the introduction of mandatory hydration breaks.
Of course, drinking water isn’t the only cause of shifts in momentum in games. Game state, big moments, and sometimes just an iffy minute or two can cause big swings, and we saw things go back and forth quite a bit in Miami.
England started well enough, seeing a lot of the ball, albeit not doing much with it. The first shot of the game didn’t arrive until the 29th minute when Kane had an effort off target.
As you can see from the game’s momentum graphic below, though, that led to a spell of pressure from Norway, including a moment when Stones got caught on the ball in his own penalty area, almost allowing Haaland a simple goal, but luckily for England, the big striker wasn’t alert enough to take advantage.
It was a nervy moment that led to a few minutes of complete Norway control, which included Haaland having his first effort of the game – a header comfortably saved by Jordan Pickford – followed by the opening goal soon after. After they scored, Norway broke up the pitch but didn’t take advantage of a very promising situation.
England were able to come back into it, with Bellingham equalising during their best spell at the end of the first half, but then Tuchel’s men somewhat went back into their shell in the second half. They briefly got back on top, only to drop back again after the second hydration break.
Their manager pointed to a lack of control as something that concerned him, and that’s certainly something they will need to address if they are to go any further at the World Cup.
Tuchel did also praise his team’s mentality, though, which is always crucial in major tournaments. They showed that again here by coming back to win from a goal down, as they did against DR Congo. In fact, England have won each of their last two World Cup matches when they’ve conceded the opening goal, having won just one of their prior 23 matches in the competition when conceding first.
Substitutions Stifling or Successful?
Managers can live or die by their substitute choices. The result of a game can often be the major filter through which the success of subs is judged, but with five now allowed per game (six with extra-time), coaches have more chances than ever to mix things up in search of a victory.
Tuchel’s subs have come under scrutiny at the World Cup, sometimes working a treat, and sometimes leaving fans somewhat baffled.
The Norway game had a little of both.
The England boss made two changes at half-time, despite his team having largely been on top to that point, barring a worrying wobble just after the half-hour mark. Declan Rice came off, apparently due to illness, as did Noni Madueke, who had struggled to make a mark on the game, not producing any shots or chances, and completing just one of his three dribbles.
On came their Arsenal teammates, Eberechi Eze and Bukayo Saka, though the former was a curious choice as it meant Bellingham moving back to a deeper midfield position, despite being so impressive higher up the field, from where he scored England’s goal.
There were further confusing moves when Reece James returned from injury to replace left winger Anthony Gordon, with James moving into midfield, Bellingham going back to the 10 role, and Eze moving out to the left.
Then Djed Spence came on at left-back, meaning England had two players who are primarily right-backs on the field at the same time, but neither was playing there until Konsa – usually a centre-back – came off for Rogers in the 89th minute, a sub that again led to some musical chairs.
Burn’s introduction for Bellingham late on was brave, given it meant penalty specialist Ivan Toney could not come on, and England’s lineup would have been quite a bit weaker for a shootout had Norway equalised. It worked, though, with Burn helping England to close out a victory.
Can England Keep Relying on Kane and Bellingham?
Kane had a very quiet game. The England captain had just three touches in the Norway penalty area, the same as Madueke, who came off at half-time (Kane played the full 120 minutes).
That would have been a concern had it not been for Bellingham. England are not a one-man team, but there is an argument that they are a two-man outfit.
In Kane and Bellingham, England have become the first team in men’s World Cup history to have two players score at least six goals in one edition (six each), with the latter especially stepping up in the last two games.
His brace against Mexico, followed by another pair here, meant Bellingham became the first player to score 2+ goals in consecutive knockout appearances in the same FIFA World Cup since Diego Maradona in 1986 (two vs England, two vs Belgium).
It followed a trend for England at this World Cup, especially since Matchday 3, when they were struggling to break down Panama until Bellingham and then Kane scored the goals to win them the game and top their group.
It was Kane who turned things around on his own against DR Congo with two second-half goals in the last 32, then Bellingham’s braces against Mexico and Norway took them to the semi-finals.
Of course, others have helped. Gordon was excellent against Mexico, as were Pickford and his defence in the second half, but the quarter-final felt like one where if Bellingham hadn’t stepped up, England probably would have gone out.
Can England keep relying on moments from their two main men? Quite possibly, we’ve seen teams win the World Cup inspired by one standout player before, not least Argentina in both 1986 (Maradona) and 2022 (Messi), and England have two of them.
But it remains the case that only Marcus Rashford has otherwise scored for England at this World Cup, and that was in the opening game against Croatia.
You feel like at some point, someone else will have to help out.
Tournament Tuchel
Tuchel was hired by England to win the World Cup. Whether the football is pretty or not, he’s still on course to do just that.
Some England fans don’t like the fact that a foreign coach is in charge of the national team, but until the rules change, you may as well hire the best manager possible, and Tuchel has an undeniable record of winning big trophies.
He won the DFB-Pokal with Borussia Dortmund in 2016-17, won two Ligue 1 titles with PSG (2018-19 & 2019-20), and almost pulled off an incredible quadruple in 2019-20 as he won Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, the Coupe de la Ligue, and guided PSG to their first ever UEFA Champions League final, only to lose to Bayern Munich.
He did win the Champions League just a year later, though, with Chelsea.
Did they do it by playing electric football? Hardly, but they won, nonetheless.
Tuchel has been producing at this World Cup, too. He is only the second England manager to go unbeaten in his first six FIFA World Cup games – after Alf Ramsey in 1966, who had the exact same record after six matches (W5 D1) before, of course, going on to win the trophy that year on home soil.
England have won 16 of their 20 matches under Tuchel across all competitions, the best win rate of any manager to take charge of more than 10 matches with a single European nation (80%).
However, he faces a World Cup-winning coach in Lionel Scaloni next up. It will be a big test for Tuchel, especially considering Scaloni is unbeaten in 10 matches against UEFA opposition as manager of Argentina (W7 D3).
Still, if the England boss’s comments after the Norway win were anything to go by, he believes his team still have a few gears to go up. If he can help his players find those gears, who knows how this summer will end for them?
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