England have to ‘prove a point’ in Serbia test: manager Thomas Tuchel

LONDON – Thomas Tuchel challenged England to “prove a point” against Serbia in the crucial World Cup qualifier on Sept 9, after his side laboured to a 2-0 win over minnows Andorra.

Christian Garcia’s first-half own goal at Villa Park on Sept 6 was followed by Declan Rice’s header after the interval as the Group K leaders made it four successive European qualifying victories.

But while England remain on course for the 2026 World Cup Finals, this was another underwhelming display that raised questions about Tuchel’s ability to produce a trophy-winning team from a gifted generation.

The Three Lions were efficient but unspectacular, lacking guile and intelligence in the final third.

Tuchel wants a more purposeful performance in the toughest test of his reign when England face their main Group K rivals Serbia in Belgrade.

“We will try to prove a point, to win and put out the next performance, and to be tough in the circumstances,” he said.

“We expect a very emotional stadium, we expect an emotional crowd. We expect maybe, yeah, to adapt to the circumstances. We don’t know what the pitch looks like. Make no excuses.

“Then we come up against a very physical team. They will attack us in a man-man situation. This is what we see until now.

“They have high quality up front, so they play very direct and we have to step up to this and adapt to the circumstances. Then prove the point that we’re a strong group and we’re on the right way.”

His opposite number Koldo Alvarez said of Andorra’s game plan: “We thought by limiting the amount of space, England would struggle to get in behind and hurt us.”

With the clock ticking towards the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, Tuchel is under pressure to build a team with a clear identity and sense of purpose.

The evidence from his lacklustre fifth game in charge suggested the German is some way from achieving that goal.

England spluttered to a 2-0 win against Albania in his first match in March and were only marginally better in a 3-0 victory over Latvia.

A woeful 1-0 win against Andorra in June was alarming for Tuchel and there was even worse to come as the Three Lions finished their summer schedule with a dismal 3-1 defeat by Senegal in a friendly in Nottingham.

It was a far cry from Tuchel’s bold claim that he wanted his team to chase England’s first major trophy since the 1966 World Cup with an attacking style that would cast off the caution showed by his predecessor Gareth Southgate.

Former Ireland and Manchester United captain Roy Keane said on ITV: “England fell back into their old ways tonight, certainly in the second half. Sidewards, backwards passes.

“We saw their two goals, particularly the second one, just from a cross. They’ve got to cross it a bit more, don’t complicate the game. And I still think they go backwards too many times.”

Despite England’s erratic form since his appointment, Tuchel is convinced his team are making progress.

“Two days to prepare for Tuesday and hopefully prove the point there too that we are ready for that, adapt to what’s coming, accept the physicality, overcome the adversity and get another win,” he said.

“Overall there are much more positive things than the negatives today. I think it was a good step, tried to speed up the game constantly.

“We had to give everything to the match, of course, and play against a deep block.

“There are still things to improve, but the direction was the right direction after the four days of training. It was a good performance, a deserved result.”

One of the main positives for Tuchel was the performance of Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson, who impressed with a composed display on his debut.

“He has the physicality, he’s a very mobile No. 6,” Tuchel said. “He has the body, he loves to defend, he loves to put his body inside to win duels. It was a pleasure to see.

“It was a bit of a nervous start to the week, which is also nice – that not everything is normal for the guys, that they’re still nervous to come to camp and are not afraid to admit it.” AFP