Overview
A non-standard pitch, harsh hot weather and continuous personnel changes after the break created a match lacking highlights between England and New Zealand. The minimal victory of the "Three Lions" at Raymond James's stadium therefore did not leave much of a professional mark.
In that context, Harry Kane once again became the hero of the England team. The header goal right before the first half ended not only brought victory to the "Three Lions" but also the 79th goal of this striker in the national team jersey, and also ended the 2-match winless streak of Tuchel's team.
It is not difficult to understand why the German strategist is not really satisfied with what the team has shown in Florida. With the World Cup approaching, the testing time is almost non-existent, and the confrontation with Costa Rica will be the last chance for Tuchel to find the optimal formula for the England team.
After this match, the "Three Lions" will have about a week of preparation before entering the opening match of the 2026 World Cup against Croatia. However, the attacking problem is still a concern for the coaching staff as England has not scored more than one goal in any match since the beginning of 2026.
However, the defense is still bringing considerable peace of mind. The clean sheet against New Zealand means that all 12 recent victories of the England team took place without conceding a goal. The last time they conceded a goal was from the 3-1 victory over Finland in the Nations League in October 2024.
In the opposite direction, Costa Rica could not win a ticket to the 2026 World Cup. The Central American team is aiming to return to the biggest playground on the planet in the future, after making a splash with the journey to the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup before stopping in the group stage at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
Los Ticos once started the CONCACAF qualifiers impressively with a perfect record, but a 4-drawn streak in 6 matches in the decisive stage caused them to lose the opportunity to participate in the biggest football festival on the planet.
Being only behind Haiti and Honduras in the final qualifiers disappointed fans, and led to the decision to part ways with coach Miguel Herrera. The Costa Rican Football Federation then appointed Fernando Batista, former captain of the Venezuelan national team, with the expectation of creating a new direction.
However, the 55-year-old strategist is still waiting for his first victory since taking office. Costa Rica started their new era with a 2-2 draw against Jordan, before continuously suffering heavy defeats 0-5 against Iran and 1-3 against Colombia.
In the context that Batista is still looking for solutions to the current difficulties, Costa Rica also hopes that the third confrontation with England will bring a more positive result. The two teams drew 0-0 at the 2014 World Cup before the "Three Lions" won 2-0 in a friendly match held 4 years later.
Expected lineup:
England: Pickford, James, Stones, Guehi, O'Reilly, Anderson, Rice, Saka, Bellingham, Rashford, Kane.
Costa Rica: Sequeira, Quiros, Mitchell, Faerron, Araya, Salazar, Flores, Mora, Soto, Alcocer, Ugalde.
The match between England and Costa Rica takes place at 3:00 AM on June 11 (Vietnam time).
