Published 19 June 2026 3 min read
Men's Senior
O'Reilly's World Cup dream fulfilled
){kind=icon}
){kind=icon}
){kind=icon}
){kind=icon}
){kind=icon}
The England youngster reflects on his FIFA World Cup debut in opening-game win over Croatia
Nico O'Reilly ticked off another item on his bucket list in Dallas after a whirlwind season continued as he made his FIFA World Cup debut for England.
The Manchester City youngster, 21, only received his first senior call-up to the Three Lions squad last October, having previously been capped at MU16 through to MU20 level in recent years.
An impressive start to the 2025-26 season with his hometown club earned him the call and he subsequently made his England senior debut in the World Cup qualifying victory over Serbia at Wembley in November.
His form for the Sky Blues continued as he played a key role in their campaign, scoring twice at Wembley as they lifted the Carabao Cup in March before winning the Emirates FA Cup in May.
And after being named in Thomas Tuchel's squad for the trip to North America this summer, he was picked to start in England's opening game with Croatia as the Three Lions kicked-off their campaign with a 4-2 win.
"It was good," said O'Reilly, as he reflected on Wednesday's game
"Obviously at the start there were a few nerves, it's my first World Cup and the atmosphere was crazy.
"But I thought I grew into the game well and was part of a good performance."
The Manchester City youngster, 21, only received his first senior call-up to the Three Lions squad last October, having previously been capped at MU16 through to MU20 level in recent years.
An impressive start to the 2025-26 season with his hometown club earned him the call and he subsequently made his England senior debut in the World Cup qualifying victory over Serbia at Wembley in November.
His form for the Sky Blues continued as he played a key role in their campaign, scoring twice at Wembley as they lifted the Carabao Cup in March before winning the Emirates FA Cup in May.
And after being named in Thomas Tuchel's squad for the trip to North America this summer, he was picked to start in England's opening game with Croatia as the Three Lions kicked-off their campaign with a 4-2 win.
"It was good," said O'Reilly, as he reflected on Wednesday's game
"Obviously at the start there were a few nerves, it's my first World Cup and the atmosphere was crazy.
"But I thought I grew into the game well and was part of a good performance."
The Three Lions took the lead twice in the first half, thanks to a brace from captain Harry Kane only for Croatia to respond with two equalisers.
"He's [Kane] crucial, he leads us so well as skipper and scored two goals, which were really important for us," he added.
"Harry's had a great season, and every time he's out there we know he can score a goal."
England really upped the ante after the break though, as Jude Bellingham slotted home a third just over a minute after the restart before Marcus Rashford rounded it off with a killer fourth goal.
But what was it that Tuchel said to his charges at the break to inspire the second-half improvement?
"The manager just said to go back out and try to play our football and don't play with fear," revealed O'Reilly.
"What's the worst that we can do, lose the game? So we went out there and switched it up and we went all out."
O'Reilly and his teammates are now back at their World Cup base in Kansas City, with focus switched firmly towards their second group stage game against Ghana in Boston on Tuesday 23 June (9pm BST).
"He's [Kane] crucial, he leads us so well as skipper and scored two goals, which were really important for us," he added.
"Harry's had a great season, and every time he's out there we know he can score a goal."
England really upped the ante after the break though, as Jude Bellingham slotted home a third just over a minute after the restart before Marcus Rashford rounded it off with a killer fourth goal.
But what was it that Tuchel said to his charges at the break to inspire the second-half improvement?
"The manager just said to go back out and try to play our football and don't play with fear," revealed O'Reilly.
"What's the worst that we can do, lose the game? So we went out there and switched it up and we went all out."
O'Reilly and his teammates are now back at their World Cup base in Kansas City, with focus switched firmly towards their second group stage game against Ghana in Boston on Tuesday 23 June (9pm BST).
