Umir Irfan
Football tactics correspondent

High pressing teams have generally struggled in the World Cup so far but it is encouraging that Thomas Tuchel was able to tweak his defensive approach mid-game.

When defending in a block, closer to their own goal, England still require work, to ensure they don't get pulled apart by off-the-ball movement. Declan Rice or Elliot Anderson dropping in to form a back five also left space in the heart of midfield that, on another day, could have been punished.

The biggest positive was their improvement on the ball. Ultimately, if England are able to control the tempo of the game, dominating the ball for large parts, they will be hoping that the time they spend close to their own goal will be lessened.

Paul Robinson
Former England goalkeeper on BBC Football Daily

It was a really good performance from England and an excellent start to the World Cup. In an opposition with the calibre of Croatia, they were playing against one of the top 10 teams in the world.

There were a lot of positives England can take from that game. Negatives usually make the headlines but the positives far outweigh the negatives from the opening match. I thoroughly enjoyed watching it.

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Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalic criticised his side's "disastrous" defending of England’s set-pieces following their 4-2 defeat to Thomas Tuchel's men.

"Allow me first to congratulate England on the win," the Croatia boss said. "It was quite a strange game, quite a difficult game, as we expected it to be.

"In the first half, we played quite well. We really did good saves and we actually kept to everything we agreed on, but unfortunately we knew that the set-pieces were the greatest danger, and we conceded two goals after a corner.

"Until now we were quite good in the set-pieces. We did not concede goals that easily and we practised for this opponent.

"We knew England’s way of play, we knew that they’re making a block and we failed to do what we practised.

"After the first corner, we concede a goal. After the second set-piece, a player just jumps in and scores again, so it was disastrous for us, specifically when it comes to a team such as England."They are strongest when it comes to goals from set-pieces. About 40 per cent of their goals are from set-pieces. We analysed that game, we knew that."We must be much, much better than we were today in our performance."

This was England’s first World Cup win against a side ranked inside of Fifa's top 15 in the rankings (Croatia 11th) since 2002 v Argentina (3rd), ending a nine-game winless run (D2 L7) and six-game losing run against such sides at the finals.

David James
Former England goalkeeper on BBC Radio 5 Live 606

On whether Jordan Pickford could have saved Martin Baturina's first goal for Croatia: "Every goalie is unhappy with every goal, irrespective of whether you could have saved it or not.

"I thought Jordan did well to get across to it, the fact he got a hand to it made it look like he could have saved it.

"Had Jordan not dived for the first goal, everyone would have said what a goal that was. Because he dived to it and got a hand to it, it looked like he could have done more.

"He did well to get into the position, he was unfortunate not to do more but it was a originally a low shot through bodies."

Wayne Rooney
Former England striker

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We could do so much better with the first goal.

I think there were a few elements. Jude [Bellingham] is a bit flat-footed and the defender comes in and wins the ball. I think John Stones can stay on his feet. There's no real danger and [Jordan] Pickford is in a good position, but he doesn't stay on his feet. He gambles and when he dives in and gambles and it means [Nico] O'Reilly has to go across. It's a nice set and good cut back and nice finish.

Could Jordan Pickford do a bit better? I don't know. He gets a full hand on it. I know it's quick. It's a good goal from a Croatia point of view but there's things England can do better to prevent it.

I'm always critical of goalkeepers. I think if Jordan is getting a hand on it like he does then he'll be disappointed.

Micah Richards
Former England defender

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If you look at the goals Croatia scored, both could have been avoided. What England did was played into their hands and allowed them to get their technical players on the ball and do what they wanted to do.

In terms of energy England were all over Croatia, so if you get ten or fifteen yards further forward, you don't even get into those situations. Having the flexibility of the energy off the bench is going to be pivotal going forward.

Did anyone else spot Ivan Perisic leapfrog over Martin Baturina in the first goal celebrations?

It was almost as impressive as the strike itself!

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Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

As good as it was, it wasn't a perfect performance from England.

Thomas Tuchel will want to tidy some things up going forward, especially in the backline...

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John Stones and Ezri Konsa were handed the nod at the heart of England’s defence by Thomas Tuchel but it was far from a settled display from the duo as England conceded twice in the first half against Croatia.

Stones, who found minutes hard to come by at Manchester City last season, saw plenty of the ball and took on much of the responsibility in building from the back, but that came with risk at times.

Konsa, a regular for Tuchel since taking charge, showed flashes of his usual composure but also looked short of rhythm alongside Stones.

So does Tuchel stick with the two defenders for Ghana? Or should Marc Guahi be brought in to steady things in the next game?

David James
Former England goalkeeper on BBC Radio 5 Live 606

On Anthony Gordon’s post‑match interview, where the winger spoke about how 'self-centredness' is a "disease": "It’s a great line. It underlines everything about it being a team performance.

"The way Anthony is talking there is encouraging.

"When Tuchel announced the squad I was thinking this is the right squad for the right reasons. I listen to the player interviews and it encourages me more."

England

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England's Anthony Gordon, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live about making his World Cup debut: "It has been a crazy couple of weeks and that just topped it off. First World Cup game, something I have dreamed about as a kid.

"Special, but it is not about me. Self-centredness is a disease and I don't want to be a part of that.

"It is about the team. Rashy [Marcus Rashford] came on and made an impact, Bukayo [Saka] and Morgan [Rogers]. It is a collective."

On the game: "A difficult first half - their goal came from nowhere and stunned us a little bit. We came out really strong in the second half and got what we wanted. They were really good and that can't be underestimated when you look at the game."

Simon Stone
BBC Sport Chief Football News Reporter

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Scoring a goal and making a pretty positive impact when he came on as substitute for England last night won't have done Marcus Rashford any harm.

On July 1, Rashford will revert to being a Manchester United player after Barcelona opted against triggering a £26m clause to buy the 28-year-old.

United say they want £40m for Rashford, who has two years left on his £325,000-a-week contract.

They also say they will not entertain another loan deal with Barcelona, which is what the La Liga giants want.

Clearly, United can't force Rashford to go anywhere he doesn't want to - and his salary rules out all but a few clubs anyway.

As it stands, United are expecting the player to return to them after the mandatory three-week post-World Cup break, which would be just in time for a training camp in the Republic of Ireland.

There is a lot of time yet for Rashford's club future to be resolved, but impacts like last night have to be viewed as a positive.

David James
Former England goalkeeper on BBC Radio 5 Live 606

Thomas Tuchel has three players, Kane, Bellingham and Rashford, who play abroad and can be successful for England whilst not being exposed to English football.

Rashford was reborn playing out in Spain.

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