Harry Kane instantly shot down Carlos Queiroz’s claims that his Ghana side ‘had England at half-time mentally and physically’.
The Three Lions were held to a frustrating goalless draw in Boston on Tuesday having squandered gilt-edged chances late on.
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The draw means England remain top of Group L but will need to win their final group match against Panama on Saturday to confirm top spot.
Ghana, who provided a huge threat on the break, succeeded in the plan to nullify England’s attack, spearheaded by their manager Queiroz.
After the final whistle, the Portuguese tactician told ITV that his side knew they had gained the upper hand over Thomas Tuchel’s men as early as half time.
However, England skipper Kane quickly refuted the 73-year-old’s claims and said England’s deficiencies were more about a lack of patience with the ball.
“I’m not so sure about that,” Kane told eSPORTY regarding Queiroz’s comments. “I don’t know what he meant by that. Everyone was pretty calm at half time to be honest.
“We just had to be a bit more patient and we had to move the ball a bit quicker.
“When you play these teams they do everything to slow the game down and get fouls and waste time…
“It is what it is. We’ve come up against this kind of tough opposition for club and country.
“You can’t fault them for it, it’s just where they’re at in terms of quality but they got a point and credit to them.
“For us now, we move on and hopefully finish the group with a win on Saturday.
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Frustration all round
There was as much frustration inside Gillette Stadium in Boston as there was around the country as England struggled to break down a resolute Ghanaian back line.
But amid the disappointment, Kane refused to be too downbeat and offered words of praise for Ghana.
“Obviously we want to win these games,” he said. “We expect to win these games, but we’re coming up against a good team. Well structured, really dangerous on the counter-attack. So it’s never easy, we’re playing at a World Cup.
“You have to expect the opposition to fight for their lives and defend with everything they have and that’s exactly what they did.
“I thought we controlled the game well. We had a lot of possessions.
“There were moments in the game we could have been a bit sharper, a bit better, but especially towards that last 20 minutes, as they started to tire and the subs came on we looked even more dangerous and had some crosses.
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“We had some half chances and obviously. I had a big chance. Nico hit the bar. So it could easily be here 1-0 and we have six points and everyone’s extremely happy. In the end it is a point.
“It doesn’t change too much for us in the group stage. So we just look forward to the next one to try and get to seven points.”
Short turnaround to Saturday’s game
The expansion to a 48-team World Cup inevitably means longer wait times between group games, something that has been a source of frustration for some players.
However, Saturday’s final group match provides a much quicker turn around and Kane is ready to quickly put Tuesday disappointment behind him.
“Sometimes it helps getting in the rhythm and flow of things,” Kane added. Obviously we get back tonight, we’ll have a couple of days and travel again.
“I think after a 0-0 you’re itching to get back out there, the attacking players and try to get a couple of goals.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing. We’ve had our prep here now. We’re going into the difficult part of the tournament so we need to be ready for that.”
