Queiroz brushes off Iran defeat before England test

Carlos Queiroz has played down Iran's heavy defeat to England at the 2022 World Cup ahead of Ghana's meeting with the Three Lions in 2026.

The Ghana coach said that match was only a lesson, not a burden, and insisted his players will go into the second group game ready to compete for a result.

Queiroz told his pre-match news conference that four years is a long time in football and that previous results matter more to the media than to the teams involved. "Tomorrow will be another story," he said.

Ghana opened their campaign with a 1-0 win over Panama and can move towards the knockout stages for the first time since 2010 if they take a positive result against England.

England beat Croatia 4-2 in their first match and are unbeaten in their past eight World Cup games against African opposition. The meeting will be the first official one between England and Ghana at senior level.

Queiroz added that his players do not need extra motivation for games against sides such as England, France or Germany, and said the key will be staying together for the full 90 minutes. He also joked that while England have three lions on the shirt, Ghana have "33 million lions" ready to fight for the cause.