Jude Bellingham says England can learn from Ghana draw
By Jonathan Veal, Press Association, Boston
Jude Bellingham says the 0-0 World Cup draw with Ghana will stand them in good stead for future tests.
England were unable to follow-up their swashbuckling opening win over Croatia with another victory in Boston as they failed to break down an 11-man Ghana defence.
But, with African nation DR Congo currently slated to be England’s opponent in the last 32, Bellingham knows lessons can be learned.
“Maybe we’re not only going to play teams from Europe or what we are used to,” he said after his man-of-the-match performance.
“It’s amazing to be able to play so early, a strong opponent from Africa who pose completely different threats.
“You saw that, it was tough to break them down. They were exceptional on the counter attack.
“We always kept that little bit of fear in us when we were going forward.
“But part of the beautiful thing of the World Cup is that you get to play against teams, players, styles of play that you don’t really get to play against, and all stands for good tests.”
The stalemate was England’s fourth successive draw in second games at a major tournament going back to Euro 2020, with Bellingham dubbing it “second game fever”.
Although the reaction to the result has been tamer than in the past, Bellingham says it is impossible to hide from his critics.
“I think you’ve got to roll with it,” he said. “I think when we play well, like the other day, we got the credit we deserve.
“We weren’t at our best, it’s normal there’s going to be a little bit of noise, and that’s completely fair and completely normal for us.
“It’s just about cracking on, getting back to Kansas, recovering well, analysing what we did, and keep going the same way that we were going before, with the same mentality, with the same attitude, try to avoid it as much as we can.
“But it’s mad now, even when you, when you don’t follow them, they pop up, so they follow you everywhere, but it’s fine.
“We’ll take what we have to take, but I think the important thing is that we’re sure in our beliefs inside the camp, and that doesn’t change.”
