Three battles that will define England v DR Congo - and the Newcastle & West Ham stars at their heart
England continue their World Cup campaign against DR Congo - we look at the key battles the Three Lions must win to progress.
There was a narrative, before the World Cup began, which suggested that the expansion to 48 teams would serve up easy fixtures for the game’s traditional superpowers. England’s tie against the Democratic Republic of Congo probably would have been cited as an example had the fixtures been known in advance. It’s an idea that has been made to look rather foolish as the tournament has worn on, and few games seem quite so straightforward now. Just ask the Germans.
The Congolese starting line-up is likely to feature six players with Premier League experience and the squad as a whole demonstrated both grit and class during the group stage. They deservedly drew with Portugal and were only narrowly defeated by a strong Colombian side. Any England fans who expect Wednesday’s match in Atlanta to be easy could be in for a short, sharp shock.
England will, nevertheless, head to Atlanta as favourites – but also as a team which has demonstrated a few worrying frailties. With kick-off fast approaching, we’ve looked at where the last 32 match against DR Congo could be won and lost.
Yoane Wissa v England’s defence
Yoane Wissa endured a hellish debut season at Newcastle United but he’s starting to find some form for his country and scored three times in the group phase, including a fine late strike against Uzbekistan. The Brentford version of Wissa might just be back.
Key to his improvement has been his partnership with Cédric Bakambu. Often left isolated up front at St. James’ Park and asked to create his own space, Wissa now plays alongside a forward who will drag defenders away from him, a situation which seems to suit him rather well.
While DR Congo are likely to start the match looking for opportunities to hit England on the counter-attack, Wissa won’t be asked to plough a lone furrow. He’ll have company as he looks to set some nerves jangling in a defence which has looked distinctly low on composure thus far in the tournament, and seems to have found the scoring touch which had deserted him in recent months. If England give him the same time and space that they offered up to all too many opposing players during the group stage, they could well be punished.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka v England’s left winger
The left wing position has become a bit of a headache for Thomas Tuchel. Anthony Gordon has struggled for form despite a promising performance against Costa Rica during the warm-up matches, and while Marcus Rashford looked much more lively against Panama the end product was often lacking, especially in the second half.
In Wan-Bissaka, DR Congo have one of the best tacklers and one-on-one defenders in England. If the left winger that Tuchel picks on Wednesday can’t find something approaching their best form, then an entire side of the attack could easily be shut down for long stretches of the game.
DR Congo will likely defend deep during the opening stages of the tie, meaning that neither Gordon nor Rashford is expected to get much space to exploit. As such, they’ll have to find routes past a defender who doesn’t let much slip by and who seldom mistimes a challenge. Wan-Bissaka’s performance – and the performance of England’s left wingers against him – could have a colossal impact on the outcome.
Axel Tuanzebe v Harry Kane
DR Congo have switched between a 3-5-2 formation and a 4-4-2 so far but given that head coach Sébastien Desabre opted for a back three against both Portugal and Colombia, you would imagine that he’ll revert to an extra man in defence against England – and that would put Burnley’s Axel Tuanzebe one-on-one with Harry Kane for long periods.
Tuanzebe won’t be completely alone in his task but he is likely to be required to stick to the central positions which Kane will hope to exploit. On paper, this could be one of the battles which favours England, but so far the Three Lions have struggled to get the ball to their star striker when the opposing defence sits deep and narrow.
Against Ghana, Kane only touched the ball 19 times. Against Panama, it was 25 times. On both occasions, space and clear-cut chances proved to be at a premium. If DR Congo’s defence remains disciplined – and their work against Portugal and Colombia strongly suggests that they will – then Tuanzebe’s seemingly thankless task could be made rather easier.
Still, Tuanzebe is not an elite one-on-one defender like Wan-Bissaka and lost more than half of his duels, both in the air and on the ground, in the Premier League last season. If England can bypass the low block and get quick balls into Kane, it could make life an awful lot easier. If that’s how the game pans out, then Tuanzebe will need to be at his very best.