Thomas Tuchel lost the chance to fully rotate against Panama after England were held to the goalless draw by Ghana.
Tuchel had been expected to completely freshen up his team against Panama if England were already confirmed as winners of Group L, but Saturday’s match in New York must now take on a new guise as positions to rotate in and where to change things up must be considered.
One area of change could be out wide, where Anthony Gordon has started on the left and Noni Madueke on the right in both of England’s first two matches.
Marcus Rashford came off the bench and scored against Croatia, though, and could come in from the start.
So could Bukayo Saka, who made an impact as a substitute in both games and has been managed carefully by England’s medical staff as they work him back to full fitness after the Achilles injury suffered in spring which saw him miss seven Arsenal games and the pain he had been suffering since.
Tuchel said after the Croatia game that they were working towards the Panama match in terms of Saka playing a full 90 minutes. His first start of the tournament, at least, could arrive at the MetLife Stadium.
In midfield, Jordan Henderson, Kobbie Mainoo and Morgan Rogers are options to come in, but Tuchel may be minded to stick with Elliot Anderson, Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice for a game England now need to win to finish as Group L winners.
Rice, though, was seen wearing strapping round his left calf as he left the stadium.
John Stones was replaced by Marc Guehi for the game against Ghana and while England did defend nervously at moments, they did also tally their first clean sheet.
A decision needs to be made at left-back, where Nico O’Reilly and Djed Spence have a start each and both came off the bench in the game they did not start.
England predicted XI vs Panama (4-2-3-1): Pickford; James, Konsa, Guehi, O’Reilly; Anderson, Rice; Saka, Bellingham, Rashford; Kane
Doubt: Rice, James
Time and date: 10pm BST on Saturday June 27, 2026
Venue: New York/New Jersey Stadium (MetLife Stadium), East Rutherford, New Jersey
