If Thomas Tuchel’s appointment was supposed to be about winning now, his first step has been to look back. The recalls for Jordan Henderson and Marcus Rashford frame the character of his first England squad, in which there are only two players aged 21 or under. They are Jude Bellingham and Myles Lewis-Skelly, who were both obvious picks in their own ways.
The wildcard picks are curious rather than exciting, with 32-year-old Dan Burn called up. Tuchel showed the charisma that should characterise his time in charge by saying he was surprised Burn had never been capped, and joking: “He is such a tall guy, but obviously it is easy to overlook him.”
While this first selection hasn’t exactly given rise to fevered anticipation or a sense of a fresh start, there is a logic to it. “Logic”, admittedly, doesn’t always inspire exhilaration.
This is nevertheless what Tuchel was getting at when he talked about “building a brotherhood”. He wants to create a more rounded squad, with youthful brio guided by elder figures. He clearly values the latter, and feels it is essential to victory. That represents something of a regression from Southgate’s surprisingly inexperienced squad for Euro 2024.
So, it’s a new era with a lot of old values. It perhaps creates a greater pressure to entertain on the pitch, but then Tuchel has repeatedly made a point of saying he wants his England to be “entertaining”.
Some at Liverpool might wonder whether that is possible with Henderson in midfield, given there was a sense he was past his best two years ago, but the suggestions are that the 34-year-old isn’t there to be a midfield lynchpin. He is to be the older brother, offering guidance more than gumption.
That was made clear when Tuchel talked about the other side of this, and the “fast forward” of Lewis-Skelly’s international career.
“I can assure a parental vibe, a little bit of a protective vibe to even feel like maybe we shouldn’t nominate him to protect him a bit, to not skip under-21s, let him go there, breathe a little bit out of the spotlight,” explained Tuchel.
“Is this maybe even our response, to not take him? But in the end with injuries and the quality and maturity he showed within the matches, we decided to take him. We come back to the likes of Jordan Henderson. If we have young exciting talents like Myles in our squad it is even more important that he has the guidance and role models, players like Jordan Henderson at his side who take care of him.”
Tuchel was also insistent that the surprising older call-ups all have a genuine opportunity to be in the squad come the 2026 World Cup in North America.
“I truly believe that Dan Burn and Jordan Henderson have every chance to be with us at the World Cup,” added the German coach. “Football in general, and maybe even more international football, is about team spirit, it is about building a team that loves to play with each other, that transports the spirit to the fans, the nation and the country.
“It is about building a brotherhood so we cannot only do it with young players and we cannot only do it with experienced players. It has to be a good balance and a good mix, in my opinion, and that’s what we’re trying to do. Without doubt, players like Dan Burn and Jordan Henderson bring something to a group, from leadership and devotion and being humble, and from setting the standards and taking care about the respect in the group.”
Rashford’s inclusion might also be considered a fast-tracking in its own way, given that he has mostly been a substitute for Aston Villa. While Tuchel has always liked him, and tried to sign him, it is testament to how much the forward has dug in under Unai Emery. It was notable that the new England manager praised his physical output, while also mentioning the need to avoid falling back into “old routines”.
“I felt that he has had a huge impact at Aston Villa since he moved. Mostly from the bench but the impact has been impressive,” he said. “The physical impact was impressive and most importantly his impact against the ball – his defensive ability, his work rate and his tracking back was impressive. I had the strong feeling that we should bring him in and push him to stay on that level, to not fall back on old routines.”
Perhaps the most interesting comment in all of this concerned a new way of playing – but one that Tuchel feels should be familiar, one that English fans see every week.
“The Premier League is a very physical league, a demanding league, a direct league … we should not copy other styles too much,” Tuchel said. “It [England’s playing style] should reflect the values of the best league in the world … a direct style, an attacking style.”
The big question now is whether the greater mix of age profiles will allow that.
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