The Wembley pitch was only a belt of green beyond the window, but Thomas Tuchel did a lot of ‘dribbling’, as he called it. That is, talking around, through and away from certain questions.
There was nothing green about the England boss as he was hit with bouncers about his future, Jude Bellingham, his future and Jude Bellingham. In one of the stadium’s corporate boxes, with a picture of Adele watching on, the German hit almost every note, even if he was working to his own tune at times.
‘You didn’t answer the question,’ said one of my colleagues after a probe about talks over a new contract, which Tuchel hints he is open to.
‘I was trying to dribble around it! And talk as much as possible!’ he fired in return.
Tuchel has been like that since he took charge, entertaining and engaging. The difference now is that so, too, are his team. He would not have got away with floating the idea of signing a new deal in the dark days of summer, when England were beaten 3-1 by Senegal and he revealed in a radio interview that his own mother found Bellingham’s on-field behaviour ‘repulsive’.
He also claimed the Real Madrid star ‘intimidated’ his team-mates. Those comments were clumsy but not without substance. If anything, he should be applauded for tackling the aura around Bellingham that can poison as quickly as it can perfume.
England boss Thomas Tuchel was in a typically entertaining and engaging mood on Friday
The German made the decision to recall Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham to his England squad
In the week when Gareth Southgate published a book Lessons in Leadership, his successor is turning pages on that very subject in public. Take his handling of Bellingham. Rather than go to Anfield to watch him during Real Madrid’s 1-0 defeat by Liverpool on Tuesday, he stayed away. Afterwards, Bellingham spoke of wanting to be back in the England squad. It felt like an order being established – master and pupil.
On Friday, Tuchel recalled the 22-year-old and, despite ample invitation, he did not revisit the comments that made headlines in June. Rather, he praised his goalscoring instinct and rare threat from the No.10 position. All the while, Tuchel was dribbling.
What about your mother, I asked him, does she have an opinion on this latest squad?
‘No, my Mum is out of the picture now!’ he said, with a smile.
But there was a more subtle warning for Bellingham, a little jab disguised as a handshake. He was talking about the success of the previous two camps, both on and off the pitch, when he revealed what the message is for the likes of Bellingham and Phil Foden, the other big name brought back on board The Good Ship Thomas.
‘The message is now, “Make sure you keep this thing going and make sure you accelerate it, because we have something going here, we are building something, we are super-excited that you are back, but the message is – contribute to it”.’
Without Bellingham, last seen in an England shirt kicking a water cooler after the loss against Senegal, Tuchel’s side have hit upon a level-headedness and togetherness that has brought four victories at an aggregate of 15-0. Hey Jude, this is how we roll now, no room for soloists who think they’re the only showstopper.
Who else?! Well, Tuchel’s management has shown that it could be Elliot Anderson, Morgan Rogers or Anthony Gordon, a trio overshadowed by the likes of Bellingham, Foden and Cole Palmer when the head coach arrived in January. He has incentivised those players – that was his logic behind leaving the Galactico in his own orbit last month – and, he will hope, motivated the so-called bigger names to rewrite theirs on the team-sheet.
Tuchel again spoke about the positive environment in the camp when the pair weren’t there
Tuchel has sent a message to Bellingham. He will hope he marches in line with his team-mates
Tuchel was also asked about his own future, but he attempted to speak around the question
It was assumed, when he first spoke in Wembley’s main auditorium on Friday morning, that Bellingham and Foden were competing for one position at No 10. He reassuringly dismissed the notion of forcing square pegs into round holes. No, he will pick a ‘team’, even if that means one or both of Bellingham and Foden starting on the bench.
Later, though, he produced his mallet, and the success or otherwise of next week’s dead-rubber World Cup qualifiers against Serbia and Albania could depend on how this possibility plays out – Foden in a ‘nine and a half’ position with Bellingham just off him at No.10, if Harry Kane is afforded a rest.
‘For this camp, Phil will play – a bit of exception of the rule – in the number 9-10ish position, in the middle of the pitch,’ said Tuchel. ‘Let’s see, because I have this fantasy about him since a long time. I think it suits him the most. So he comes and supports Harry more or less, plays maybe for Harry or whatever, in the nine-and-a-half-ish role.’
It was the only time during an hour of interviews that the pupils of his inquisitors dilated. Because the last time Foden and Bellingham were used together as false nines, we had our eyes squeezed shut. That was when, ahead of last October’s 2-1 home defeat by Greece, interim boss Lee Carsley as good as penned a resignation letter with a team-sheet that made little sense, much like the subsequent performance.
Tuchel will no doubt be smarter than that and he will have Declan Rice and Anderson holding in support – not, like Carsley, Palmer. And, if ever there was a time to experiment, it should be now, with World Cup qualification already secured.
For it will be in North America that we will, ultimately, return judgement on the manager. By then, he can dribble all he likes, if his players don’t put the ball in the net, he won’t be bagging that new deal he fancies.
That is why Tuchel has picked Bellingham. He may have flexed his muscles and rightly so in recent months, but he knows England are stronger with one of their best players. For all the talk, he needs those who can walk the walk, and Bellingham has shown he can strut on the biggest stage. The challenge, and one he has embraced, is making sure he first marches in line with everyone else.
