ONE TOUCH SUMMARY
- Jude Bellingham's performance against Panama showed how England can unlock their stodgy attack.
- Harry Kane has scored 13 goals in Tuchel's 17 England matches, with no teammate above three.
- England have struggled to create in open play in the US, with little built for Kane.
ONE TOUCH INSIGHT
England's problem was never Harry Kane. It is that nobody in this squad has been able to play the pass he actually wants. Thirteen goals in 17 Tuchel matches is a striker doing his job in a team that has not been finding him.
That is what the Croatia penalty and the header from a corner — then the rebound blazed over against Ghana — tell you. Kane's tournament has been built on dead balls, with almost nothing created for him in open play. He drops deep because that is the only way to touch the ball.
Jude Bellingham against Panama flipped that. He occupies the pocket Kane has been vacating, which lets Kane stay high as a box striker instead of a No 10. It is a trade, not a fix: Bellingham's runs buy Kane space, and Kane's gravity buys Bellingham the seam. With no other England player above three goals, Tuchel has no third source.
The selection that decides this is whether Bellingham keeps that licence with a sitting midfielder behind him. That is where the stodge returns if Tuchel blinks.
WHY IT MATTERS
England's over-reliance on Kane is a structural problem, not a form blip. If Bellingham can share the creative burden, Tuchel gains a repeatable route to goals that does not depend on one striker.
TACTICAL FIT
Pairing Bellingham's running and link play with Kane lets England threaten through the middle rather than relying on set pieces, where Kane's Croatia goals came from a penalty and a corner.
THE DEBATE
Is Bellingham the fix for England's attack, or is Kane still the problem?
AI-assisted · generated from The Guardian reporting, not editor reviewed
