England held by Ghana as Konsa escapes penalty scare in Boston

England’s draw with Ghana in Boston turned on one second-half collision, when Ezri Konsa launched himself at Prince Kwabena Adu inside the area and briefly put the Three Lions under penalty scrutiny. The goalless result left Group L finely poised, after England had beaten Croatia 4-2 and Ghana had opened with a 1-0 win over Panama.

Boston Stadium hosted the match on 23 June 2026, with FIFA listing kickoff at 20:00 local time, 21:00 in London and 20:00 in Accra. The fixture came with clear stakes: FIFA said victory over Ghana would guarantee England a place in the knockout phase, a route that had seemed open after England’s strong start against Croatia.

The decisive flashpoint arrived after Ghana pushed forward in the second half. Adu broke into the area and Konsa’s last-ditch intervention became the match’s most disputed moment. The Telegraph described Konsa as “hugely fortunate not to concede a second-half penalty” after he threw himself at Adu, while another match account said Adu’s shot was heading in before it struck a team-mate. However the incident was judged in real time, the outcome spared England from a possible spot-kick and kept the contest level.

For Ghana, the chance to pressure England on replay underlined how little separated the sides in a group that also includes Croatia and Panama. FIFA’s own preview had framed the game as a meeting between former world champions England and Ghana, a label that reflected the scale of the match and the consequences hanging over every defensive action.

England could not find a winner after the Konsa scare, and the 0-0 draw meant they missed the chance to seal immediate progress to the round of 32. With Croatia and Panama still in the mix, Group L remained tight heading into the final round of matches, and England’s path now depended on a cleaner finish than the one they produced in Boston.