England manager Thomas Tuchel has confirmed that Bukayo Saka is highly unlikely to start against Ghana in the second group L match at the ongoing World Cup 2026.
Tuchel intends to protect Saka by bringing him off the bench, with plans to make him a full starter by the final group game against Panama.
Despite missing the starting lineup in their opening 4-2 win over Croatia, Saka came on as a substitute and made an immediate impact, assisting Marcus Rashford for England’s fourth goal.
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Noni Madueke is expected to retain his spot on the right wing, though Tuchel has hinted he has tough selection decisions to make following strong training performances from Saka and Rashford
“Bukayo is ready and will get more and more ready. I think once we go to the last game of this group he will be ready.
“He was strong in training yesterday, in small spaces. It was just a matter of if the game against Croatia was open and was up and down.
“We are so strong from the bench and I was so impressed with everyone against Costa Rica because they pushed on the buttons and pushed on the gas and kept suffocating the opponent.
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“We needed this quality against Croatia to bring it over the line. I know they are all starters. They buy into this idea that we do it as a team.”
England will face Ghana on Tuesday before playing Panama on June 27th. A win against Ghana would guarantee a place in the next round for England, who are firm favourites to win their final 2 group stage clashes.
