Thomas Tuchel has vowed to remain “brave” with his selection choices – even if it means dropping some of England’s biggest stars. England delivered one of their finest performances of recent times by demolishing Serbia 5-0 on Tuesday evening, achieving the feat without the services of Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, Cole Palmer and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Morgan Rogers, Noni Madueke and Elliot Anderson truly seized their opportunity and have put themselves firmly in contention for next year’s World Cup, with Tuchel pledging that competition will be ruthless. Tuchel emphasised his desire for a more compact squad to guarantee healthy rivalry within the camp while ensuring players consistently regard every call-up as an honour. However, the German also made it abundantly clear that he is prepared to make bold decisions – and will continue doing so in the build-up to next summer’s World Cup.
The England manager declared: “I am always brave. You know that. But I don’t talk now about hypothetical names that can be left out.
“Let’s see who’s fit and available. I think we took some brave decisions already. We nominated a squad of only 21 to keep the competition going.
“The competition is on. If you are in camp, you are in your best behaviour, your best shape, best form and you make the best of it.
“It’s a privilege to be in camp and then fight for your place. If you can help everyone to be better and to grow and this is what we did.”
Tuchel also maintains that the triumph in Serbia highlighted precisely how crucial teamwork is alongside team spirit, which remains essential for his England side.
He further stated: “Of course. This is a team sport. This was team work in its purest form. They have the quality to play for us and the hunger to play for their country and everyone gets his chance.
“If a big player misses out on a tournament, we need to have solutions, if he misses a camp, we need to have solutions.
“We have to focus on the guys who are available and who are ready to be the best versions of themselves and the best teammate possible and this is what we did.”