Updated: 11 Jun 2026 08:41 BST |
5 min read
Mikel Arteta will have learned a valuable transfer lesson during England’s 3-0 win over Costa Rica on Wednesday night amid Arsenal’s pursuit of Aston Villa superstar Morgan Rogers.
Thomas Tuchel’s side ramped up their World Cup preparations with a comfortable victory in Orlando, with Declan Rice, Anthony Gordon and Ollie Watkins all on the scoresheet as they swatted aside Costa Rica with minimal effort.
It was a marked improvement from the performance versus New Zealand on Saturday, with England zipping the ball across the turf with impressive speed and Tuchel’s preferred game model on clear display in the Orlando sun.
Gordon was a constant threat down the left, and combined nicely with Nico O’Reilly on a number of occasions, Noni Madueke was potent on the opposite flank, while Elliot Anderson controlled the tempo from midfield with another excellent display.
For Arteta, however, he will have been impressed by how Eberechi Eze and Rogers dovetailed together in the second-half.
Both players were named on the substitutes bench by Tuchel, but they were two of 11 changes in the second-half, with the pair playing as advanced midfielders ahead of a lone pivot in the form of Manchester United star Kobbie Mainoo for the final knockings.
There have been questions over whether Eze and Rogers have the ability to play together if the latter joins Arsenal this summer, but they went some way to answering such doubts on Wednesday night.
Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze can play together
FootballTransfers understands that Arsenal are exploring a deal for Rogers ahead of the 2026 summer transfer window and we have been informed that he is open to completing an Emirates Stadium switch after the World Cup.
Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain have also been heavily linked with the 23-year-old, but Arsenal appear to be the frontrunners for his signature as things stand.
In Eze, the Gunners already have an extremely talented attacker capable of playing as an advanced midfielder or a left winger, and their interest in Rogers – who is a similar profile of player and is likely to cost at least €100 million – has therefore raised serious questions.
However, the pair proved they can play together on Wednesday. Of course, if Rogers were to join Arsenal, there is a strong possibility that Arteta wouldn’t deploy them both in midfield, but it certainly worked against poor opposition for England.
Eze played a beautiful through-ball to set Rogers up for a glorious chance in the 76th minute, which he inexplicably put wide, while there were a number of other occasions during the latter stages of the match in which the pair were able to find each other despite being faced against a fairly resolute deep-block.
They looked comfortable on the pitch together and they certainly appeared to have an immense understanding of how to play alongside each other.
There are certainly still doubts over whether Arsenal would be better served signing an out-and-out left winger this summer, instead of Rogers, but he proved that he can dovetail nicely with Eze on Wednesday, which will be music to Arteta’s ears.
Related stories:
Build The FIFA World Cup 2026™: LEGO© releases stunning football-inspired collection
Transfer Rumours: €100m Federico Valverde bombshell as midfielder chooses Man Utd
Premier League summer transfers 2026: All the Done Deals
The FootballTransfers app
Check out FootballTransfers’ new app for all of football’s big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.
The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:
•Google Play
•App Store
