“I was Surprised!” – Former England Star Reacts to Thomas Tuchel’s First Squad and Appointment | OneFootball

Former England Star Reacts to Thomas Tuchel’s ‘Surprising’ First England Squad

We’re now just days away from Thomas Tuchel’s first game in charge of the England national team with his recent squad announcement raising some eyebrows. The German takes over from Gareth Southgate, who resigned after England’s defeat to Spain in the EURO2024 Final last summer.

On the whole, Southgate was a hugely successful appointment for England but he just couldn’t get his sides over the line in a major tournament. He reached two European Championship finals, as well as reaching the semi-final and quarter-finals of the World Cup.

Photo IMAGO

But now, Tuchel is set to lead England into a new era and the former Chelsea boss has already made some interesting decisions in his squad announcement. The return of Jordan Henderson grabbed the headlines, whilst the likes of Conor Gallagher stay home. Marcus Rashford also makes a return, whilst Miles Lewis-Skelly and Dan Burn received their first senior call-ups.

Former England and Liverpool star Glen Johnson spoke exclusively to EPL Index and shared his thoughts on the squad announcement and the appointment of Tuchel…

Will Thomas Tuchel be a Success?

“He has got a huge job on his hands, that’s for sure,” began Johnson, “It’s going to be a hard task to get all of these young players to a world-class level, which Gareth Southgate was very good at.”

“It’s also hard to define success in the England dugout,” continued Johnson, “Some thought Gareth ws a huge success and some didn’t. You basically have to win something.”

As cut-throat as it seems, that’s the reality of the situation. It has now been 59 years since England won the World Cup all the way back in 1966 and the FA are keen to avoid a repeat of the infamous golden generation of players in the 2000’s that never lived up to the expectation.

That was a team filled with the likes of John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Paul Scholes, David Beckham and Michael Owen. The current crop of players paint a similar picture with the likes of Jude Bellingham, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer all being amongst the best players in the world.

Photo: IMAGO

“If they can compete like they have in recent years underr Southgate, then I think people will always be satisfied,” said Johnson.

Tuchel has a seriously impressive track record in tournament football, with eight tournament wins across his time at Borrussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea. His 2021 Champions League-winning Chelsea squad still being one of the weakest sides to ever lift the European Cup.

Reaction to the Squad Announcement:

“I was surprised by some of the names in the squad, to be honest,” said Johnson, “But it’s not like he is going into a tournament tomorrow. He has plenty of time to build his squad and use some of the young lads.” Youngsters like Jarell Quansah, Lewis-Skelly and James Trafford have all earned call-ups and a huge opportunity to impress the new boss.

“He will be wanting to take a look at them all on and off the pitch,” continued Johnson, “Any player that isn’t in this squad shouldn’t worry too much because there’s going to be so many changes over the next few camps.”

Tuchel’s first game in charge is on Friday as England take on Albania in the UEFA World Cup Qualifiers at Wembley Stadium. The Three Lions then face Latvia under the arch once again in the same competition.