England winger Noni Madueke has declared he is ready to deliver on the biggest stage, as the Three Lions prepare to face DR Congo in the FIFA World Cup 2026 knockout rounds.

Speaking at England's training base in Kansas City on Monday, Madueke made clear that performing under pressure at a World Cup demands a mindset of total self-belief — bordering, as he put it, on healthy delusion.

"I feel like you have to feel like you're a top player, you're here for a reason, you're playing for your country, you're on a bigger stage. You have to have that confidence, that excessive confidence in your ability because at the end of the day, alongside your teammates, on that pitch, it's down to you to deliver."

The 24-year-old winger acknowledged that breaking down deep, compact defences has been a challenge not just for England but for other elite nations throughout the tournament.

"I feel like it's not just us. I feel like every team has difficulties with the opposition setting up 11 players in 30 metres of space. It's not easy to break down. We've seen other top nations struggle as well — Spain, Portugal in the last game. So it's just part of football now."

Kane and Bellingham leading the way

Madueke was equally effusive in his praise for teammates Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, describing the pair as decisive players who carry responsibility for the side.

"Two very decisive players, two players that take responsibility for us. Jude, especially in the last game against Panama, was unplayable. Obviously you know what you're going to get from Harry in terms of the goalscoring, so I'm really delighted that they're playing their best football and we hope it continues for the knockout stages because we need them."

England defeated Panama 2-0 in their most recent outing, with Bellingham putting in a performance Madueke described as unstoppable.

Eyes on DR Congo

Madueke expects DR Congo to adopt a defensive approach, pointing to England's prior group-stage encounter with Ghana as a reference point for what his side may face.

"Of course, when you play England, naturally you're going to have a defensive approach because of the quality in our team. From our perspective, we have the same patterns and we'll look to implement them a little bit better than we did in the game against Ghana, which probably will be similar to this one."

Madueke's pace and versatility could prove crucial if England are to unlock a disciplined DR Congo defensive block in the knockout stages of FIFA World Cup 2026.