Thomas Tuchel says he can lead England to World Cup glory despite his ‘mediocre’ playing career, as he declared: ‘You don’t have to be a horse to be a good jockey.’
The Three Lions take on holders Argentina in tonight’s semi-final here in Atlanta, with much of the build-up centred on Jude Bellingham’s reaction to Tuchel’s comments after Saturday’s 2-1 victory over Norway.
The head coach was highly critical of his team’s technical performance in Miami but praised their mentality in finding a way to win.
Bellingham, who scored both goals, was later asked about the criticism, and said: ‘Maybe that means he doesn’t know what it’s like to play in those kind of conditions against Erling Haaland, (Martin) Odegaard, (Antonio) Nusa and (Alexander) Sorloth.’ He had earlier shrugged off the manager’s comments when replying ‘whatever’ during an on-pitch interview.
Tuchel has no issue with the 23-year-old’s response and believes his player was only presented with the ‘negative’ side of his analysis. He spoke to his squad at their Kansas City base on Sunday to clear up his words.
Thomas Tuchel says he can lead England to World Cup glory despite his ‘mediocre’ playing career
It comes after Jude Bellingham claimed Tuchel ‘doesn’t know what it’s like’ to play in big games in the wake of the Three Lions’ win 2-1 win over Norway
But after Bellingham’s comments were interpreted by some as a reference to the German’s lower-league playing career, Tuchel said: ‘I had a mediocre career, at best. But I don’t think that you have to play (to be a manager). A funny quote, you don’t have to be a horse to be a good jockey!’
Tuchel, though, says he and Bellingham are on the same page.
‘I think our comments come from the same place from being competitive and having the edge when competition is on,’ he said. ‘He was just confronted with the negative side. I called him a world-class player. I said he had world-class actions again to decide the match. I said the mentality is outstanding of this team.
‘So he was confronted with, ‘What do you think, the coach said you were sloppy?’. I would also maybe bite back when I come from 120 minutes, scored two goals, gave literally everything that is in my body. It’s just a very normal reaction for a player of his mindset.
‘So no problem. I spoke to the whole team after in the dressing room, which was basically the same message. And I explained it again on Monday evening to just move on forward. Then in the talk we straight away put on a new direction, put on a new head, which is the semi-final and Argentina.’
Like England, Argentina have made heavy work of the knockout rounds. They needed extra-time to get past Cape Verde and Switzerland and a stoppage-time winner against Egypt.
However, Tuchel knows that Lionel Messi and his team-mates will be motivated by more than just football against England, given the historic tension between the countries.
‘They are fuelled by history, it means a lot to them,’ said Tuchel. ‘So this is what we expect and what we are up against.
The Three Lions are gearing up to face Lionel Messi and Argentina in Atlanta tonight
‘I coached some of the players, I can sense it. You can see it. They have this kind of edge. You can sense it when they’re a goal down and when matches are tight. They’re a tough group. They’re almost the same group as four years ago. You can see the cohesion, the sacrifice that they put into it. They don’t panic when they’re behind. They believe in their style. And their style is very emotional. It was in Qatar and it is now.
‘But we are also emotional, we have the grit, we have the mentality that it takes to go up against it. We are ready for it. This is the time to go for it. I feel another change of mood in the camp, ‘Oh wow, we’re getting close now’.’
To get close to the final, England will have to stop eight-goal Messi. Tuchel admits that will not be easy but he is encouraged by his team’s handling of Erling Haaland at the weekend.
‘It is just incredible, how he (Messi) pulls it out every single time, in so many different ways,’ he said. ‘He finds spaces, he finds moments, and the big thing is that the whole team buys into that idea to support him. They are just ready when he bursts into action to make the difference.
‘Can you prepare for that and find the recipe, and focus too much on him? No, but we need to be brave around him, we need to stop the support, and we need to take care of all the movements that happen when he’s on the ball. We are totally aware that we cannot stop him all the time. He’s a very different player from Erling Haaland, but we did very well in the way you maybe should play against Erling, so we will find a way now.’
Meanwhile, Tuchel has a full squad to pick from after all of his players bar Jordan Henderson, whose tournament is over, trained in Kansas City on Tuesday.
It could be that Tuchel makes just one change from the XI that beat Norway, with Bukayo Saka coming in for Noni Madueke on the right. That would mean sticking with the same back four and again using Ezri Konsa at right back.
Declan Rice has trained well after recovering from illness.
How much is David Beckham set to pocket from his World Cup brand deals? Take on our quiz in our newsletter HERE.
