England midfielder Eze urges team to ignore 'people who aren't playing'

Eberechi Eze chases down the ball during the second half of England's draw against Ghana
Eberechi Eze chases down the ball during the second half of England's draw against GhanaCJ GUNTHER / UPI / Profimedia

England midfielder Eberechi Eze has urged his teammates to ignore outside criticism following their frustrating goalless draw with Ghana at the World Cup.

The Arsenal forward made his tournament debut on Tuesday and insisted the squad is staying calm despite the disappointing result that leaves them needing a result in their final group game, describing the World Cup as a "long journey".

"It’s normal," he told reporters of the negative reaction. "There's going to be opinions outside of what's going on and what they think of the game, but we’re not too focused on that. We trust what we're doing.

"(We) can’t spend too much time listening to people that aren't playing and aren't actually on the field. We know what we're doing, we trust what we're doing and we're confident, so that's all that matters.

"It’s a long journey. You can’t be too high, too low, you have to trust in what you're doing in the present moment. We're trying to enjoy it as much as we can and being confident on what's to come."

England dominated possession at Boston Stadium, controlling 78.8 per cent possession - the highest recorded in goalless World Cup matches since records began in 1966.

The Three Lions also registered 19 shots at goal and struck the crossbar, with captain Harry Kane blazing over in the final moments.

Yet despite failing to score, Eze remained upbeat about England's performance.

"(Ghana) were very solid, very compact. They made it difficult for us at times," he said. "We controlled a lot of the game and (were) unfortunate not to score in areas, but we’ll still be positive, trust in what we’ve been doing and (be) confident for the next game."

The forward insisted the result would not alter England's mindset ahead of their final Group L match against Panama on Saturday, as they search for a win that will guarantee top spot.

"The mentality is still the same, still focusing on doing what we need to do to win," he said.

"We're positive. We know what we've been doing to get to this position, we're confident of what we've been doing. Today was a difficult day because of how well they played, but we could've got a win today.

"I'm trusting that what we've been doing, how we've been playing, the confidence that we're playing with will put us in a good position to top the group."

World Cup 2026

The 2026 World Cup will be held from June 11th to July 19th in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The tournament will feature 48 national teams and will be played in 16 modern stadiums.

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