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Thomas Tuchel said he wanted his England team to entertain the nation and that he pictured the scenes in the pubs as his players took the handbrake off to power past Croatia 4-2 in their World Cup opener on Wednesday.
England were passive in the first half, too deep, the connections lacking. They entered the interval at 2-2, Harry Kane’s goals cancelled out by a pair of soft concessions that were in keeping with the team’s openness.
But England exploded into life at the start of the second half, Jude Bellingham’s surging run and finish in the 47th minute the spark for an extraordinary period of pressure. Tuchel had told the players to calm down during the interval, not to worry about the result and be true to their way of playing.
After Bellingham’s goal, they had seven clear openings leading up the hour, albeit they could not take them. Croatia were rocking and Tuchel knew the pubs in England would be the same. Croatia had a couple of moments when they might have equalised before the England substitute Marcus Rashford sealed the win in the 85th minute after a clinical counterattack.
It is unclear whether a gung-ho approach will lead to World Cup glory, but the performance has ignited a sense of possibility and Tuchel is keen to harness the momentum. England’s next game is against Ghana on Tuesday.
Tuchel was asked whether fans could expect England to take the handbrake off during the tournament. “It is what the boys did in the second half – exactly that,” he said. “It is good. That is what needs to be done. Nobody can guarantee the outcome, but we can guarantee the effort.
“Can we expect more of that? Yes. It is good and it is rewarding. Hopefully everybody enjoyed it. And it brings a connection. I had a thought in the second half: ‘People in the pubs will like this.’
“I was sweating, but that is a good watch where we created and created and went for it and won another ball and then a second ball. That is why you are in a pub and watching together on a big screen to get emotional and hopefully we can transmit that.”
Tuchel’s frustration with England’s first-half performance was rooted in how they dropped too deep out of possession, seeking to protect the 1-0 lead that Kane’s early penalty had given them. It was a classic England move – or failing. Tuchel wants to see only aggressive, front-foot football.
“We just dropped way too early into a deep block,” Tuchel said. “From a middle block … way too early into a deep block. Normally if we go to a middle block it’s not a problem. We have clear triggers to go out of it into a high press.
“We wanted to have John Stones pushing into midfield [from central defence]. They blocked John with their No 9 so maybe they also knew or it was a coincidence. It took us a while to understand that Elliot [Anderson] can then push [from central midfield].
“So we lost a bit of confidence, couldn’t find the right triggers and we had the feeling that we have to protect something. We ended up too deep and too passive. In the second half, it was much better. We were much more active and aggressive.”
Tuchel said the conditions inside Dallas Stadium were a challenge, despite it being a domed air-conditioned venue, and that Stones had “cramps in both legs in the end”. The defender has not played many matches since early December. Kane also suffered cramp in the dressing room afterwards but is understood to be OK. Declan Rice intends to soldier on despite hamstring and lower-back discomfort.
“We saw the [physical] numbers – the players really put a shift in,” Tuchel said. “They said it was quite humid and difficult to digest it so I think John was just like everyone else … everyone was very tired in the dressing room, which I like because then I know that you did something. And we need this. Overcoming the tough moments, sticking together.”
