England's World Cup Journey Begins Against Croatia
Eight years on from heartbreak in Russia, England walk back into an old storyline with a new leading man on the touchline and a familiar one up front. The World Cup 2026 journey starts in Dallas, and Thomas Tuchel’s first chapter in this tournament opens against Croatia in a Group L fixture loaded with history.
Same opponent, different era. But the scars of that semi-final defeat still sit close to the surface.
Tuchel Steps Into the Spotlight
This is Tuchel’s England now. The German coach, a serial tactician on club nights under floodlights, steps into the unforgiving rhythm of a World Cup with a squad that looks built to go deep.
He has 25 of his 26 players available. Only Trevoh Chalobah, a late call-up and not yet ready for action, misses out. Everyone else is in the frame, and that gives Tuchel options: shape, tempo, personnel. He will use them.
At the top of the pitch, there is no debate. Harry Kane starts. Kane always starts. The captain arrives at this tournament as one of the headline names in a competition where the stars have already begun to leave their mark. Goals are flying in elsewhere; Kane will expect to add his own soon enough.
The Saka Question
The real intrigue lies out wide. Bukayo Saka is the puzzle Tuchel must solve before kick-off.
The Arsenal winger, so often England’s balance on the right and their calm in the chaos, is nursing an injury that needs careful handling. England know what Saka gives them: penetration, intelligence, bravery on the ball. They also know what they risk by pushing him too hard, too soon.
Does Tuchel roll the dice in game one? Or does he hold Saka back, managing his minutes with the long haul in mind? It is the sort of decision that can define not just a match, but the rhythm of a campaign.
Whatever he chooses, it will send a clear message about how aggressively England intend to start this World Cup.
Croatia Changed, Modric Constant
Across the halfway line, the names have shifted but the silhouette is recognisable. Croatia are not the same force that dragged England into extra-time and then out of the 2018 World Cup. That side carried the weight of a golden generation; this one feels more transitional, lighter on fear, heavier on questions.
Yet one man still knits it all together.
Luka Modric remains the heartbeat of Croatia’s midfield, the enduring metronome in a side that has lost some of its old ferocity but not its sense of craft. At 38-plus, he still dictates games with the ball, still finds spaces others don’t see, still has the authority to slow everything down or speed it up in a heartbeat.
England know this. Stop Modric, and the game changes. Let him breathe, and old nightmares threaten to resurface.
Group L Stakes in the Texas Heat
This is not just a reunion; it is a marker. Group L also contains Ghana and Panama, and on paper England and Croatia are expected to set the pace. But World Cups rarely respect paper.
A win in Dallas would give Tuchel’s side control early, easing the pressure before the grind of the group intensifies. A slip, and the margins tighten immediately, with Ghana and Panama waiting to exploit any hint of vulnerability.
So England walk out under the Texan sun with a familiar opponent, a new architect on the bench, and a captain whose goals are meant to carry them far beyond the group stage.
The time for warm-up talk has gone. Now we find out whether this version of England can turn an old wound into the starting point of something far bigger.
