Gary Neville incredibly claims England played BETTER in draw flop against Ghana than thrilling Croatia win and hails ‘control’ – despite chaotic defence getting lucky with red card and penalty decisions

Gary Neville surprisingly claimed England played better in their 0-0 draw with Ghana than in their convincing 4-2 win against Croatia.

The Three Lions played out a frustrating goalless draw on Tuesday night after having just four shots on target despite having 78.8 per cent of the possession.

This was the most possession of any team in a World Cup without scoring a goal since records began in 1966.

Clear-cut chances were few and far between as England struggled to break through Ghana’s disciplined defence.

Meanwhile, Ezri Konsa was lucky not to miss the ball at the end of the second half, catch Prince Adu’s knee in the last move and concede a penalty.

Both Jude Bellingham and Jordan Pickford avoided potential red cards: Bellingham for covering his mouth while speaking to Jordan Ayew, and Pickford for colliding with Prince Adu as he raced towards goal.

But despite that, I’m speaking to you on his hosted Stick to Football Podcast. Sky BetNeville thinks England’s performance was more refined than the thrilling 4-2 win against Croatia.

England boss Thomas Tuchel disappointed with Three Lions retained by Ghana

“I enjoyed the game,” Neville said. ‘I will be heavily criticized for this but part of me thinks it was a better performance than the game against Croatia.

‘If you mix the Croatia game with the Ghana game you’ll probably get a very good performance.

‘I liked most of the game; control, order and chaos were gone. I think [Marc] Guéhi and [Ezri] Konsa put pressure and stopped the counter attacks, I thought they were in control of the match and it went well.

‘The set pieces in that game were a real opportunity; there were plenty of corners and free kicks and Declan [Rice] roll [Elliot] Anderson for the header, it’s a routine they’ve really worked on, they’ve created that space at the back and it’s a really bad header.

‘It will be interesting to see how this game is received on home soil. These are the kinds of games I’ve played a few times for England; We knock on the door, we can’t solve them, they are too deep and that’s why you criticize.’

England captain Harry Kane missed a golden chance to become the top English scorer in World Cup history when he fired a rebound over the bar from six yards into the open net in the final five minutes.

“You had a great chance with Harry Kane and I couldn’t believe he missed it,” Neville added. ‘Can’t miss these chances.’

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Perhaps the most encouraging sign was that England’s backline kept a clean sheet – if erratic at times – after scoring twice in the opener against Croatia.

Tuchel made two changes in defence, introducing Marc Guehi and Djed Spence in place of John Stones and Nico O’Reilly as he looked to find his strongest backline.

Neville feels restricting Ghana to two shots will give the defense more belief as the tournament progresses.

‘If I replace one of those defenders or become the defensive coach in Thomas Tuchel’s backroom team, I will go there. [Jordan] Pickford, you don’t celebrate, you don’t laugh, you don’t boast, but there is a quiet satisfaction.

“I think someone will say in the dressing room: 0-0 is the best draw you can get for England right now because we need to build that confidence defensively.”

‘I think [Ezri] Konsa and [Marc] To be fair, Guehi did do that.’