FIFA World Cup 2026: Ghana coach Queiroz hails team's fighting display in goalless draw against England

Massachusetts [US], June 24 (ANI): Ghana coach Carlos Queiroz expressed pride in team's fighting display after the Black Stars held England to a goalless draw in their Group L encounter of the FIFA World Cup 2026, at Boston Stadium on Tuesday (local time), as per Reuters.After their 4-2 win over Croatia, England were expected to continue their attacking momentum, but instead found themselves stifled by a spirited Ghana side, as they ended up sharing points. The draw leaves the African side on the brink of securing a place in the knockout stage of the World Cup.After the match, Carlos Queiroz said he was proud of his players' fighting spirit and their commitment to sticking to the game plan throughout the match."I am so proud of the way our players fought during the game, how much they stand behind the plan, the game plan," said Queiroz as quoted by Reuters."When you have to defend, you defend. I cannot play samba when they play rock and roll. That's the name of the game, but the goal was exactly to finish the first half with the England team frustrated, with no solutions." Queiroz said his players always believed they could compete against England, calling the Three Lions a strong World Cup contender.

He added that the draw was a valuable achievement for Ghana."My players always believed that we had the chance to win against a great team. I will say, my humble opinion, England, they can be candidates to win the World Cup.

But this is a result, an achievement," said Queiroz.In the match, England dominated possession but struggled to break down a compact and disciplined Ghana defence. Ghana stayed organised with a five-man backline and limited England's chances, restricting them to long-range efforts in a first half that saw no shots on target.Queiroz said Ghana grew into the game after halftime, believing England struggled to find answers to break them down. He added that both teams had chances to score, making the 0-0 draw a fair result."When they (England) went into halftime, they knew they don't have solutions to beat us and that was when we started to grow up and control the game. We could have scored.

Unfortunately, we didn't do it, but I think also England could score. So a draw is a fair result," he said.In the second half, England introduced Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Eberechi Eze to add more attacking threat, which improved their urgency.

However, Ghana continued to defend resolutely and blocked key openings.England's best chance came late when Nico O'Reilly hit the crossbar and Kane missed the rebound, while another late effort was cleared off the line in stoppage time. Despite sustained pressure, England failed to score, with Ghana earning a valuable point through a strong defensive display. (ANI)