England 0-0 Ghana: 79% Possession, Zero Goals, and a Group L Mess

79%.

That is the percentage of possession England had against Ghana in Foxborough on Tuesday night. It is the highest possession figure recorded by any team that failed to score in the last 60 years of World Cup football. England touched the ball more than any team in recent history in a goalless draw.

They still couldn't score.

Croatia won 1-0 against Panama in the other Group L fixture. England sit second. Ghana sit third. The final group game is now a must-not-lose for the Three Lions.

What happened

England passed. England passed more. Harry Kane had one good chance in the second half and put it wide. The full-backs crossed. The wingers cut inside. Ghana sat in a low block, won second balls, and rode their luck when they had to — which wasn't very often because England's threat was mostly sideways.

Gareth Southgate's successor will not have enjoyed watching this. The pattern is depressingly familiar: England control, England dominate the statistics, England cannot find a way through a well-organised lower-ranked team. The difference this time is that at previous tournaments it cost them knockout matches. Here, it cost them two group stage points — which might yet come back to haunt them.

Group L table

| Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts | |------|---|---|---|---|----|----|-----| | Croatia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | | England | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | | Ghana | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | | Panama | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |

Croatia are through. Everyone else still has something to play for.

The LMS fallout

England were a popular LMS pick going into this fixture. A team ranked in the world's top ten, against Ghana, with the match at 79% possession — on paper that looks like a banker. In practice it was a 0-0 against a deep-sitting African side. Anyone who backed England was eliminated.

This is the World Cup group stage LMS trap in its purest form: a strong team, a weak opponent, and a result that makes no statistical sense but happens anyway. There is no reliable way to avoid it completely. The only partial safeguard is not stacking your pool on the same picks as everyone else — because when England disappoint, entire pools get wiped at once.

Croatia look the genuine article in Group L. If you haven't used them yet, they're worth serious consideration for Matchday 3 or the knockout rounds.

If you're running a Last Man Standing pool or a predictor game for the World Cup, Matchroom handles picks and results automatically — free at getmatchroom.app.