How did England players rate during the World Cup?

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Jude Bellingham scored six goals for England during the World Cup Published 19 July 2026 England finished the World Cup by beating France 6-4 in an extraordinary third-place play-off. BBC Sport England reporter Alex Howell rates how the players did throughout the tournament. Goalkeepers Jordan Pickford: The Everton goalkeeper is undoubtedly England's number one and has proven he can deal with being on the big stage. However, this was not Pickford's best tournament and he produced some erratic moments. His best performance came in the semi-final loss to Argentina, but he will question himself over Enzo Fernandez's goal. 6 Dean Henderson: England's second-choice goalkeeper came to the tournament in form. Henderson started the bronze-medal match against France, producing an excellent save to deny Kylian Mbappe but conceding three goals. 6 James Trafford: Came to the tournament as third choice and did not feature but travelling to a World Cup is good experience. N/A Defenders Ezri Konsa: The Aston Villa defender featured in every game and continued to show he has the quality for international football. A starting centre-back and also played at right-back in the win over Norway in the quarter-finals. He ended the tournament with a goal in the third-place play-off. 7 John Stones: It was considered a gamble by Thomas Tuchel to take Stones considering his fitness issues. He started the first game, had some shaky moments and dropped out for the next couple. But he regrouped and started the quarter-final win over Norway and semi-final defeat by Argentina. The 32-year-old showed his quality but was caught under the ball for Lautaro Martinez's winner. 7 Marc Guehi: A staple of the England backline at major tournaments. Guehi did not start the opening game against Croatia but when he came in he showed his usual calmness and quality. Guehi put in an excellent performance against Manchester City team-mate Erling Haaland in the quarter-final against Norway and performed well until England went out. 8 Trevoh Chalobah: The Chelsea defender was called up as a replacement for Tino Livramento. It was a decision that prompted a lot of debate as it was felt it left England short in the full-back areas. Chalobah was brought on in the closing stages of the win over France for his only minutes of the tournament. 5 Jarell Quansah: This was Quansah's first major tournament and he was arguably a surprise pick in the 26-man squad. But the Bayer Leverkusen defender did show why Tuchel was so keen to have him as a full-back option. Quansah started well against Panama before getting injured, then did likewise against Mexico before he was sent off. He returned for the third-place play-off, and has a bright international future. 6 Dan Burn: The Newcastle defender's inclusion was the subject of much debate but his performance against Mexico underlined the reasoning. Burn's aerial prowess gave England a way to see out games, though Tuchel tu