Thomas Tuchel says he has turned into “Tournament Thomas” – and is enjoying the “best days” of his whole career.
Tuchel says he is in “competitive mode” because he is determined to deliver the World Cup for England this summer – and insists his players are ready to go all the way.
England got off to a flier by beating Croatia 4-2 and they now face Ghana in Boston in their second Group match which could guarantee their path in the knock-out stage. It was England midfielder Declan Rice who highlighted how even Tuchel has raised his game in the tournament and is lifting England to new heights in the World Cup.
When asked whether he has become “Tournament Thomas” and is a different animal, Tuchel said: “I don’t do anything extra, it just gives me a lot of energy to be at a World Cup, to have this tournament and be in competitive mode.
“I’ve had one of the best days and weeks of my coaching career until now. I am surrounded by world class players and fantastic personalities. It energises me and that’s how it needs to be done.
“I’m influencing the players, influencing the staff so I have to be on the front foot, also not too much. I want to have the right mix between relaxation and the smile and the arm round the shoulder and good spirit.
“I hope that they feel it because the competition is on and I want to be at my best and support them, first of all, to be their best because it’s their stage. It’s their potential that has to bring us all the way and should shine. That’s how I understand my role and I love the competition and to be a coach.”
Tuchel has enjoyed a brilliant coaching career at club level with Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint Germain and led Chelsea to winning the Champions League. But Tuchel now believes England’s stars are also ready to help lift the World Cup – and they are setting their own standards.
Tuchel said: “The players keep themselves on edge. The guys who did not get the minutes from the beginning are pushing but we make sure and we try to make sure in training exercises that everyone is pushing but that is the mentality. That is why I love the team anyway.
View 3 ImagesEngland manager Thomas Tuchel during training in Kansas City
“Normally we need to hold them back and that was straight away the case. It was also important to acknowledge the physical impact and the physical input that we had. We needed time to recover from that and we needed to give the players time to recover from that mentally. Emotionally but also physically which we did.
“There was one-and-a-half days off. The build of the training session was yesterday to grow into this week and today was very tense and on a high level.
“It is our job to not be complacent and say ‘ok, everything is done now,’ the players know that hard work is needed and it will always be a mix but at the moment I cannot see any signs of complacency.”
England stars have adopted Wonderwall as their World Cup anthem – and are going old school with their music.
The Football Association have installed a turntable to play vinyl at the team hotel even though some younger players were not even aware records even existed. They have brought a selection of LPs and songs which they have all been playing at their base in Kansas City.
It is another way to keep the players entertained through the World Cup and they have all been singing along to Oasis’ Wonderwall after England’s win over Croatia last week. That was playing in the stadium after the game and captain Harry Kane even said it was one of his favourite moments of his entire career.
England boss Thomas Tuchel went to an Oasis gig at Wembley last year and sang along – and is hoping they will carry on singing it all summer. Tuchel said: “Hopefully it becomes an anthem because that is exactly what a tournament like this is for, for the connection between fans and the team.
View 3 ImagesHarry Kane joined in with the fans after the win over Croatia(Image: MI News/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)
“I am so glad because I think the fans saw and felt what I see and feel every day with this team. They felt the energy, they felt the team spirit, they felt the commitment. And from all this energy came the synergy after the match. It was a beautiful moment and it meant a lot to all of us. It meant a lot and hopefully we can recreate this in the next game.”
Tuchel has been reluctant to sing the national anthem God Save The King until he earns the right as England boss. But Tuchel, who is a big music fan, says he already knows all the words to Wonderwall – and loves singing along.
He added: “Of course. It is a brilliant song and if you stand in front of the wall, it is like an iconic song and easy enough for everyone to sing.”
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