"We felt that, a little bit, at the last Euros. We got to the final and there was still a lot of negative noise around us. We knew that unless we won it that noise was going to continue, and it did, that's part and parcel of it. The success we've been building since 2018, semi-finals of the World Cup, a final, quarter-final, then another final, we've been knocking on the door, and we've consistently been one of the best teams in the world."
"I think we're at that stage now where only a win is going to satisfy ourselves and satisfy the country, Going into this tournament, there's an expectation. We're fourth in the world rankings, people see us as one of the favourites. We have to acknowledge that and take it into the tournament and handle that pressure."
England completed a flawless qualifying campaign under Thomas Tuchel, winning all eight matches, scoring 18 goals and conceding none. The team has maintained ten consecutive competitive clean sheets, equalling a European record set by Spain. England were drawn into Group L with Ghana, Croatia and Panama for the World Cup. Recent tournament history includes a 2018 World Cup semi-final, a 2022 quarter-final, and two Euro finals. Captain Harry Kane has eight World Cup goals, two behind Gary Lineker's England record. England enter the tournament ranked fourth and are viewed among the favourites, facing high expectations and pressure.
Read at Soccer News
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