Thomas Tuchel claims that ’99.9 per cent’ of the England fans he has met since the World Cup have not even mentioned the crushing semi-final loss to Argentina in Atlanta.
Despite the fact that England went in to retreat after taking the lead against Lionel Messi & Co to lose 2-1, Tuchel says that supporters he meets only want to talk about the positives.
Tuchel was heavily criticised for defensive substitutions in the second half that night but said: ‘I know 99.9 per cent of the fans don’t talk to me about substitutions, tactical tweaks or tactical details.
‘They speak about where they watched the Mexico game, and they speak about the second-half energy of the Croatia match.
‘They speak about how nerve-racking it was to watch our match against Congo and where they celebrated.
‘This is the feedback I get. This is what we created, and how it should be.’
Subsequently pressed on the matter, Tuchel admitted he had ‘some bad stuff between the Argentina game and France third place game’ but this is understood to have been a reference to media or social media comments.
Apart from that Tuchel feels he has the support of the country ahead of a Nations League campaign that begins with a home game against World Champions Spain a week today.
Trent Alexander-Arnold was the surprise name in Tuchel’s 27-man squad. The Real Madrid star hasn’t played for England since June 2025 but has been recalled after fellow right-backs Reece James, Djed Spence and Ben White all picked up injuries.
Cole Palmer, meanwhile, is also back after recovering form and fitness at Chelsea.
The England manager said: ‘Their quality is undisputed but they need to show it.’
Tuchel said in his opening England press conference two years ago that the former Liverpool player had to always concentrate on his defending.
Asked last night whether he offered enough defensively, Tuchel said: ‘He has to, he has to. It’s necessary.
‘My conviction is that he will but he has no choice.’ Tuchel said he initially hoped to choose a similar squad to his World Cup one only for injuries to force his hand.
As a result there are also call-ups for Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite and Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott along with Leeds forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
One player facing an almost impossible road back is Harry Maguire. The Manchester United defender Tweeted about his exclusion from the World Cup squad before it had even been announced last May while his mother said on social media she was ‘absolutely disgusted’ by the decision.
Asked whether the door was now closed on Maguire, Tuchel said: ‘I will not hold it against him for the rest of his life, because I’m not that type of person.
‘I can forget easily and quickly, but I didn’t like it and it doesn’t help.’
Re-live Daily Mail Sport’s live coverage of Thomas Tuchel’s England squad announcement BELOW.
