Captain Harry Kane says England are facing their World Cup “moment of truth”.
Kane was one of eight players rested by manager Gareth Southgate for Thursday’s dead rubber against Belgium, despite sitting on five goals for the tournament already.
He will come back into the side for Tuesday’s second-round match with Colombia and it is hoped his goals can help England arrest their horror record in knockout football.
“Colombia are a tough team and have got some great players and we have to be ready for that.
“We have had a great start. This is the business end. It’s a totally new tournament now. You focus on finding a way to win.”
Southgate’s decision to rotate, with only group position at stake, led to criticism, especially as a similarly-weakened Belgium ran out 1-0 winners on Thursday.
Kane, though, says England need to remain calm.
“This is what you put all those hours in for,” he added.
“This is why you work technically and tactically, for big games like this. There’s going to be more pressure on us now, but I think it’s important for us to have that mentality just to be calm in these situations, enjoy it all.”
