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Following England’s opening victory over Croatia, Rio is full of praise for the way Thomas Tuchel set up and managed the team after they scored 4 goals and created many more opportunities.
After watching the match in his Airbnb with Joel Beya and Ste Howson - Rio praises the performances of Jude Bellingham, Marcus Rashford and Elliot Anderson.
There were some concerns about the defence who were put under pressure numerous times but Rio explains why John Stones challenge of switching sides as a centre-back is such a difficult one to overcome.
Harry Kane joins the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Lionel Messi who all scored at least two goals in their opening fixture which prompts a debate around the effectiveness of Cristiano Ronaldo after he drew a blank for Portugal against DR Congo.
According to Rio - England’s squad depth could be a hugely decisive factor in their journey through the tournament and suggests only France can compete with the attacking prowess on the bench that Tuchel has at his disposal
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"Praise for Bellingham, Rashford and England's Bench - That Could be the Difference" is an episode of Rio Ferdinand Presents. Runtime 26 min. Published June 18, 2026. Hit play above to stream it here, or open the free Spot Sports app for background play and offline downloads.