Roy Keane branded Thomas Tuchel ‘harsh’ for his criticism of Gareth Southgate’s England this week.
And the Irishman threw the gauntlet down, demanding that the German gets results before he badmouths his predecessor too much.
Earlier this week, Tuchel suggested that England lacked ‘identity,’ ‘excitement,’ and ‘hunger to win’ at Euro 2024 – despite the Three Lions reaching the final.
It was a stunning reproach of the team system Southgate had built, especially considering Tuchel has only just started in the role, but one which resonated with fans.
‘It seems a bit harsh, because obviously they won a few football matches over there, and there were a lot of teams that had a good identity, (but) they came back before England,’ Keane told ITV before England’s World Cup qualifier against Albania on Friday.
‘It’s well and good talking a good game, they’ve got to perform.
Thomas Tuchel was ‘a bit harsh’ on Gareth Southgate with his criticism, says Roy Keane
Keane says Tuchel must prove himself first by winning matches, not just ‘talking a good game’
Ian Wright understands where Tuchel was coming from with his criticism and doesn’t think England had a clear identity at Euro 2024
‘But yeah, seems a bit harsh on Gareth (Southgate), but I know where he’s coming from, a certain style of play, they were heavily criticised despite winning football matches, but I still think we shouldn’t get away from Gareth doing a good job with England.
‘He’s got a great plan, hasn’t he? Let’s see how that pans out.’
Ian Wright had more sympathy with Tuchel and agreed with the points Tuchel had put across.
He said: ‘It’s his second language, I think he’s just very honest, brutally honest about what he was saying.
‘Remember, we changed our midfield something like three times, so maybe that’s what he’s looking at. The way he has spoken about it doesn’t sound great, but I think that he was right, we didn’t (have a clear style).
‘By the time we got to the final, we knew exactly how Spain were going to play, we weren’t quite sure how we were. So maybe that’s what he was on about.’
Tuchel has been brought in for the England job with an 18-month contract and a clear objective: win the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.
That is easier said than done, but Tuchel has a record of winning titles, most notably the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021 just four months after taking the job.
Tuchel argued that Southgate’s England were lacking ‘identity,’ ‘excitement,’ and ‘hunger’
The 51-year-old is experienced at handling elite players, having also won trophies at Bayern Munich – where he coached Harry Kane – Paris Saint-Germain, and Borussia Dortmund.
He gave a scathing verdict of where England went astray last summer, telling ITV that the missing ingredients were: ‘The identity, the clarity, the rhythm, the repetition of patterns, the freedom of player, the expression of player, the hunger.
‘They were more afraid to drop out of the tournament in my observation than having the excitement and hunger to win.’
On what he wants from England instead, Tuchel said: ‘I want that when the opponents come out and see our team lined up in the tunnel that they know, oofff, this is going to be tough, they will give us a hard time, these guys are individually good, they play in the best clubs but, oofff, these guys, they seem to be close friends, they seem to be ready to die for each other, this is going to be a tough time.
‘You can be sure that if I say something in a press conference, I have addressed it to the players. The players know my assessment (of Euro 2024) but it’s not even addressed backwards.
‘It’s addressed “what I want now”. The message is up front. I felt they were holding back – the group did not play with enough excitement and togetherness to make it happen.’
