England are among the favourites to go all the way at next summer’s World Cup in a tournament that will be played in stifling temperatures in USA, Mexico and Canada
Thomas Tuchel says he has already envisioned winning the World Cup with England(Image: UEFA via Getty Images)
Thomas Tuchel has told his England players to be brave enough to dream of winning the World Cup. Tuchel will discover England’s opponents for next summer in Friday’s star-studded draw in Washington and admits that he has pictured himself lifting the trophy.
When asked if he has thought about it, England boss Tuchel told ITV : “Yes, of course. You dream about it because it’s huge and my personal biggest joy is to see the joy of the players, the staff and my friends and family to see how they happy are.
“Everyone knows that we cannot promise that we win it but they want to see a team, team spirit, a team that gives everything, fights for each other and they want that is they are in the stadium or watching on the TV. If the players bring that then I think anything is possible.
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“We will be brave enough to dream about it, we will be brave enough to try it. Always. But I feel the change in expectation and a change in the feedback I get from fans and people who I meet because they like what they saw.
“It’s important to arrive with the right attitude on the back of good results, outstanding performances and we’ve built something and we grew together and now we have to wait until we meet together in March. But [Friday’s draw] is a big milestone ahead of the World Cup.”
Tuchel admitted that the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada will throw up different challenges, including the scorching temperatures.
The German coach said he would consider copying Borussia Dortmund from last summer’s Club World Cup when their substitutes sat in the dressing room to shelter from the sun.
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Tuchel told the BBC : “If this is what helps us later in the match when they come on, okay we consider that as a possibility.
“Nobody likes it as I want the players to be out here and feel the energy and give the energy from the bench onto the field but I know what you mean.
“But I saw teams doing this and players doing this at the Club World Cup. Hopefully we can avoid it. It is always better if they can be with us.”
Meanwhile, Tuchel said that he has now studied the footage of Jude Bellingham getting upset when he was substituted in Albania. He said after the game he had not seen it and would review it at a later date.
When asked if he had looked into it, Tuchel added: “Yes, of course. It’s pretty clear what happened and I didn’t see it during the match. I think you understand that I’m in Washington now for the World Cup draw so the subject is not for now.”
