Tuchel demands more from Foden and Rashford as England host Latvia

Bengaluru — Thomas Tuchel has held constructive discussions with Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden after criticising their minimal impact on the wings against Albania, the England coach said on Sunday ahead of their next World Cup qualifier against Latvia.

Both Rashford and Foden were substituted in the second half of Friday’s 2-0 win over Albania at Wembley Stadium where they were largely peripheral figures, with Tuchel demanding more aggressive runs towards the box.

Tuchel said Foden needed to build better connections with the midfield while Rashford had been unlucky with the timing of his runs.

“I’ve spoken to both of them, also in front of the group. They know that I appreciate the effort, I think especially off the ball,” Tuchel told reporters.

“We can see in the numbers and when we watch the match again how much effort they put into defending high and to the counter-press. Also in their sprinting numbers, Marcus had a lot of runs when we had the ball where we did not see him or use him.

“Phil is just maybe not finding the momentum, at the moment, that he can have. But both of them are very positive, have every right to be positive and know exactly what we want from them. Ideally, we try to bring them in more one-on-one situations.”

Tuchel gave no clues as to who would start against Latvia on Monday but suggested some fresh players could come in.

“It’s only the second day after the match. It’s still a day where we have to be cautious,” he said.

“It could also make sense to put some fresh players who really deserve to play... Maybe it will be a mix between the both.”

Earlier, winger Anthony Gordon withdrew from the squad due to an injury sustained in the win over Albania and returned to his club Newcastle United for further assessment.

Gordon came on as a substitute in the latter stages of the game but went down with what appeared to be a hip injury.

One player who could play a part is Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White, who did not make the initial squad but earned a late call-up when Cole Palmer was forced to skip the qualifiers with a muscle injury.

Tuchel said Gibbs-White handled the disappointment of missing out on the initial squad well and that the 25-year-old was excited when he got the second call.

“It’s very likely that he will be in the squad. Morgan is an amazing character, I have to say. I’m happy that he’s with us. He deserves a lot of praise,” Tuchel said.

“It’s also how we expect it to be because it should be an honour and it should be a privilege to play for England. The egos have to be put aside. That’s what everyone’s doing and Morgan does it in an impressive way.”

Reuters