Thomas Tuchel insists that the scar tissue of England’s past traumas should inspire them rather than inhibit, as they head into the World Cup knockouts against DR Congo.
It was 10 years ago this week that several of the current squad were involved when England were beaten by Iceland in the last 16 of Euro 2016. There have since been painful defeats in two Euros finals and a World Cup semi-final.
But Tuchel rejects the idea that such disappointments will weigh heavy on his players here in North America, instead pointing to the example of Rafa Nadal and a documentary he watched on a recent flight of the 22-time major winner.
‘There is no way you get through this without scars,’ he said. ‘You will not find great athletes who didn’t suffer big defeats. You just don’t find them. I’ve just finished a documentary on Rafa Nadal, and even I thought he just wins every match out there every year. But you see, wow, a year of injuries, a heavy loss, another big defeat, sleepless nights, self-doubts and questioning. Everyone around him doubting him.
‘We all had our big defeats where you doubt yourself. Ask me how I felt after our 1-0 win against New Zealand (in the warm-up games). I still remember thinking, “Am I good enough? Did I get this right? OK, let’s keep on”.
‘If you want to win a big prize, there is not an easy route to get there. Yes, we have some scars – but it helps you, actually. It helps you to remember the moment, how painful, but it is always possible to redirect your energy.’
Thomas Tuchel has urged his England players to take inspiration from their past knockout defeats
It was 10 years ago this week that the Three Lions were knocked out of the Euros by Iceland
England face DR Congo at the Atlanta Stadium as strong favourites, and that brings an added pressure.
‘I know everyone expects us now to beat DR Congo,’ said Tuchel. ‘We are the first ones to expect it from ourselves. It doesn’t just mean that it will happen. We still have to do an awful lot to do it. But we still expect it from us, so that (pressure) is fair enough.’
Tuchel, who has an exceptional record in knockout matches as a club manager, added: ‘I just love it (knockout football). It gives an extra edge. It’s what makes the FA Cup and Carabao Cup special. But the first rounds of those cups, they’re not sexy. You need to overcome them and later it becomes glamorous.
‘Here, you need to get out of the group, and then you need to find the win. You need to wear opponents down. You know that they have quality and we will face that again now in the first knockout. We will face a copy of Ghana, a copy of Panama, a proud team, a defensive team, a committed team, a quick team who are happy to counter attack.
‘We need to get our expectations right so that we are not frustrated, that we keep on believing. We have 90 minutes, we have 120 minutes, we have a lot of chances to win this match, and this is where the focus is.’
England will be without right back Reece James, who has a hamstring injury. Jarrell Quansah started in the position against Panama at the weekend but he also missed training yesterday after turning his ankle in that game. It means Tuchel is pondering the use of Ezri Konsa or Djed Spence at right back. If it is Konsa, John Stones will return at centre back.
Declan Rice is set to start in midfield after being rested in New Jersey, and that means Morgan Rogers will likely revert to the bench. The other call he is considering is whether to use Noni Madueke from the start in place of Bukayo Saka, who looked below his best against Panama and is managing an Achilles issue.
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