England defeated Costa Rica 3-0 in their final World Cup warm-up friendly early Thursday morning at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, according to The Guardian. A severe thunderstorm delayed kickoff by an hour, but manager Thomas Tuchel’s squad maintained complete control over the pitch from the opening whistle.
Declan Rice opened the scoring in the ninth minute with a deflected shot assisted by Anthony Gordon. Gordon earned the start on the left wing over Marcus Rashford. He later smashed home a penalty in the 68th minute to double the lead. Substitute Ollie Watkins finalized the 3-0 scoreline with a close-range header in the 87th minute.
Tuchel used the match as his ultimate tactical test before the 2026 World Cup tournament begins. He opted to start Jude Bellingham as the No. 10 over Morgan Rogers. Bellingham delivered a commanding performance. His link-up play with captain Harry Kane looked significantly sharper than their disjointed partnership during the Euro 2024 campaign, as highlighted in a recent tactical analysis.
Tuchel expressed deep satisfaction with the team’s intensity. He told reporters he “wished for that” and feels the squad has developed the necessary “brotherhood and team spirit” ahead of the tournament, per his post-match reaction.
This fixture concludes England’s pre-tournament preparation phase. The squad travels to Dallas next Wednesday to face Croatia for their highly anticipated Group L opener.