T. Tuchelis was not inclined to celebrate as one might expect after reaching the top four teams in the world.
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“The result is fantastic, we made it to the top four and that is amazing, but I am not satisfied with the performance,” T. Tuchelis told ITV television. “In every sense. Again, the commitment is there, but we made life very difficult for ourselves with how we played: we were careless, made many technical mistakes, were not fast enough and not stable enough. Today we were lucky.”
Such words from the coach did not please J. Bellingham. Hearing T. Tuchelis’s assessment, the midfielder who scored two goals did not hide his irritation.
“Yes, well, it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter,” replied J. Bellingham. “It was tough. It’s hard work. All the players gave their all, so my thoughts and thanks go to those who were on the pitch and worked great again.”
In another interview, when asked to comment further on the coach’s criticism, J. Bellingham chose an even harsher tone.
“Maybe he doesn’t know what it means to play under such conditions against Erling Haaland, Martin Odegaard, Antonio Nusa, and Alexander Sorloth,” said the footballer. “This is not an easy team. I think we tried to create a positive environment. It’s impossible to win every game just by distributing the ball and making a thousand passes. Sometimes you have to win dirty, and we did that tonight.”
When asked if he agreed with T. Tuchelis’s assessment that the English were lucky this time, J. Bellingham replied briefly: “No comment.”
Seeing the growing tension and the increasingly discussed clash of opinions, T. Tuchelis later tried to soften his words. The German emphasized appreciating the players’ efforts and insisted that there was no gap between him and the team.
“I am impressed by their work and how they overcame difficulties,” said T. Tuchelis. “There won’t be too much praise, but I am also a football coach and I know we can play better.”
“We found a way to the top four, which of course is the most important,” added the strategist. “My analytical mind still thinks we have to play better. This is not a problem, there is no gap between me and the team. Not one percent. I am wholeheartedly with them and I love my players madly.”
England captain Harry Kane confirmed that T. Tuchelis was not impressed with the team’s play in the dressing room either. However, in the striker’s opinion, such demandingness can help the English in their pursuit of a second world champion title.
“He just said in the dressing room: biggest congratulations, we should enjoy and celebrate this, but it still felt like he knew we could do better, which in a way is a good thing,” H. Kane assessed the situation. “If we are in the World Cup semifinals knowing that we can still improve, still rise to the next level, then we have to take it as a positive thing.”
