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England huffed and puffed against the Ghanaians, but could not find a way past their disciplined low block.
That 0-0 stalemate was in stark contrast to their attacking brilliance against Croatia, against whom they were able to take advantage of a side that wanted to play on the front foot.
Thomas Tuchel won’t press the panic button yet, mind you, with some positives to take from the game. England restricted Ghana’s occasionally dangerous counter-attacking raids to just two shots, with only one on target.
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The situation in Group L is somewhat complicated on the whole, but for Panama the picture is clear – only a win in New York on Saturday evening will be enough to give them a chance of a place in the knockout round.
Can they pull off an almighty upset? Surely not…
Panama v England tips
England -1 Handicap & Over 5.5 Corners @ 1.1/1 (Paddy Power)
England to Win 1-0, 2-0 or 3-0 @ 13/8 (Paddy Power)
Second Half Goals Range: 2-3 @ 11/10 (Paddy Power)
Odds courtesy of Paddy Power. Correct at the time of publication and subject to change.
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Wham, bam, thank you Pan
England may not have had the guile to break down Ghana’s low block, but they should find Panama’s tactical approach much more to their liking.
Their opponents need to win, so will have to open up at some points, but these Panamanians don’t rest on their laurels anyway.
They had 62% possession against Ghana and 42% against Croatia, so Panama aren’t a side that sits back and soaks up pressure – they want to be assertive and get involved in the game.
That’s all well and good, but those open spaces will surely help England to recapture the thrilling attacking play that looked so sharp against the Croatians.
Tip: England -1 Handicap & Over 5.5 Corners @ 1.1/1 (Paddy Power)
Explanation: Our bet lands if England win by two or more goals and also win six or more corners.
Clean sheet
This is a selection that will hit the skids should Panama find the net, of course.
But so far they have recorded 0.73 xG from 11 shots against Ghana and 0.55 xG from eight shots against Croatia. In layman’s terms, that basically means that Panama have not been able to carve out clear goalscoring opportunities.
Given that England are, arguably, better defensively than those other sides mentioned, it seems entirely possible that Panama will return home from the World Cup without having registered a single goal.
This is a juicy price on them failing to find the net, while England notch one, two or three goals.
Tip: England to Win 1-0, 2-0 or 3-0 @ 13/8 (Paddy Power)
Explanation: Our bet lands if England win by any of those three scorelines within the selection.
Late entertainment
Panama's World Cup dream is already over.
But they’ll be savvy enough to know that coming out of the blocks hard and trying to open up a lead early could prove catastrophic.
Instead, they’ll look to stay in the contest for as long as possible, in the hope of nicking a late goal and pinching the win.
Even if England score in the first half, it’s unlikely that Panama will open up properly until after the half-time break.
Hence this selection. Panama’s desperation to score, allied to the danger posed by England’s likely second-half substitutes, suggests that goals could, relatively speaking, flow in the second period.
Tip: Second Half Goals Range: 2-3 @ 11/10 (Paddy Power)
Explanation: Our bet lands if there are two or three goals scored in the second half.
Panama v England: Match result odds
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