England manager Thomas Tuchel hasn’t shied away in his scathing assessments of the nation’s previous shortcomings under his predecessor, Gareth Southgate. Tuchel will take charge of England for the first time against Albania on Friday before Latvia visit Wembley three days later to start the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.
The Football Association named the German coach as Southgate’s replacement in October, and he officially started work at the start of 2025. Tuchel named his maiden squad last Friday, which included several changes from Southgate’s Euro 2024 group and those of Lee Carsley’s interim reign. When asked about where England fell short at last summer’s tournament, losing to Spain in the Berlin final, Tuchel didn’t pull any punches.
“[There wasn’t a playing style], not last summer,” the ex-Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund boss told ITV.
“The identity, the clarity, the rhythm, the repetition of patterns, the freedom of player, the expression of player, the hunger [were all missing].
“They were more afraid to drop out of the tournament, in my observation, than having the excitement and hunger to win.”
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