Bellingham admits England played with 'little bit of fear' in World Cup draw with Ghana

Jude Bellingham admitted England played with a “little bit of fear” after the Three Lions were held to a 0-0 draw by Ghana in their second World Cup group-stage fixture in Boston. The Real Madrid midfielder, named man of the match despite the stalemate, said the result still represented a “good test” ahead of the knockout rounds.

England had opened their campaign with a 4-2 victory over Croatia — Bellingham and Marcus Rashford both on the scoresheet — but struggled to replicate that second-half fluency against a disciplined Ghana side. Bellingham pointed to the Africans’ threat on the break as the primary reason England were cautious going forward.

“Maybe we’re not only going to play teams from Europe or what we are used to,” he said. “It’s amazing to be able to play so early, a strong opponent from Africa who pose completely different threats. You saw that, it was tough to break them down. They were exceptional on the counter attack. We always kept that little bit of fear in us when we were going forward.”

The 22-year-old framed the draw as part of the broader education a World Cup provides. “Part of the beautiful thing of the World Cup is that you get to play against teams, players, styles of play that you don’t really get to play against, and all stands for good tests.”

The result extended England’s run to four successive draws in the second game of a major tournament, stretching back to Euro 2020 — a streak Bellingham wryly labelled “second game fever”.

On the criticism that followed, Bellingham was measured. “When we play well, like the other day, we got the credit we deserve. We weren’t at our best, it’s normal there’s going to be a little bit of noise, and that’s completely fair and completely normal for us.”

He added that the squad’s priority now is recovery and analysis ahead of their next fixture. “It’s just about cracking on, getting back to Kansas, recovering well, analysing what we did, and keep going the same way that we were going before, with the same mentality, with the same attitude. The important thing is that we’re sure in our beliefs inside the camp, and that doesn’t change.”