This feels different with England, and that is because of Thomas Tuchel.
Watching the first half against Croatia this week took me back to the European Championship final in 2021.
We had everything in our favour that night against Italy – we went 1-0 up early through Luke Shaw, we had home advantage and we had the better players. It was there for the taking.
What led to us not winning? Mentality. We dropped off. We became negative. We became fearful. That is what can happen as a player. I’ve been there, and especially with England when the stakes are high.
When we went out at major tournaments in 1998, 2000, 2002 and 2004, we led at some stage in all of the decisive matches. It’s not even an instruction from the manager, often it’s just human nature to protect what you’ve got.
So going 1-0 up against Croatia and then 2-1, losing the lead both times, I feared we were seeing the same, the mentality block that, to be honest, I don’t think we speak about enough. It has been a real, debilitating issue for England over the years.
Thomas Tuchel was an invigorating presence in the dugout and has made crucial changes to England’s mentality
Join the discussion
What mentality shift do you think England needs most to finally win a major tournament?
But that is why this time felt different. Tuchel addressed it, he confronted it. If we do what we did in the first half – score, drop deep, concede, score, drop deep, concede – we don’t stand a chance at this World Cup. The best teams will pick us off and punish us. Game over.
Tuchel, clearly, changed how the team was thinking at half-time. Watching the second-half as a former player, someone who has been there, that was what struck me the most – wow, the manager has altered the mindset.
For him to say to them, ‘I don’t care if we lose, but let’s do it our way,’ that is so liberating as a player. I loved the second-half, not just as a fan, but because it told me, ‘Hold on, we might have a chance here’.
The challenge for them now is to have that approach from the start, not just after half-time. It’s a good thing that Tuchel has seen this potential weakness in the first match. He has not let it ride and just hoped for the best like some former managers. Seeing the impact he had on the performance made me think back to our ‘Golden Generation’ team – that was the sort of decisive management we needed.
One thing I was surprised about was that it took until the 72nd minute to make substitutions. I wrote before the game that I’d make changes as early as half-time in those forward areas. It was no surprise to see Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka come on and impact like they did. Now it all worked out, of course, but why not give Rashford half an hour or longer?
The defence did look shaky, but we know that. We didn’t just concede goals, there were some decent chances too. I’m still nervous about our defence in the knockout rounds. That is why England have to make it about them, have to attack, have to put their best players like Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham at the centre of what they do. The reassuring thing is that the manager knows that and he will play to our strengths. Kane was brilliant, he really is the best finisher in the world. He’s lethal.
England excited me against Croatia – but it was Tuchel who impressed me most.
Don’t write off a legend like Ronaldo
It did not help Cristiano Ronaldo that Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick the night before Portugal played, but I’m not having the criticism of him.
Portugal weren’t great in their 1-1 draw with DR Congo and a lot of the fallout has been around Ronaldo and him being a problem for them.
But hasn’t he always played like this, to a degree? He has never been a player, especially in recent years, who involves himself in the game. He will be there for the big moments, though. If he’s not scoring, it’s too easy to blame Ronaldo. At 41, he is going to be questioned.
But how many times has this happened and he’s shut everyone up in the next game? If you’re picking Ronaldo then you have to accept what he is there for – and I wouldn’t be surprised if he responds with a hat-trick of his own against Uzbekistan.
Can YOU master Craig Hope’s World Cup quiz? Test your knowledge HERE
