Friendlies are always a tricky phenomenon.
Play poorly and you place little stock in their importance, but win convincingly and there is an inflated optimism that can be at risk of clouding any sensible judgement.
A 3-0 victory over Wales — who sit 30th in the FIFA rankings — should be taken at face value, but there is a synchrony, cohesion, and familiarity emerging in the performances from Thomas Tuchel’s England that should be met with encouragement.
One of Gareth Southgate’s greatest strengths was curating a “club environment” as national team manager, providing a consistency in his selection and messages to give England a greater chance of long-term success. One year after his appointment, there is evidence that Tuchel is looking to do the same, with arguably greater tactical acumen to overcome more testing challenges that will arrive in next summer’s World Cup.
“I just watched a documentary on the (American football team) New England Patriots and saw a quote there — ‘We don’t collect the most talented players, we build a team’,” Tuchel said ahead of the game. “I cannot agree more. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
Tuchel’s England impressed against Wales on Thursday night (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
For those unaware, the Patriots have won six Super Bowls since the turn of the century. With Tuchel’s clear remit of winning the World Cup next summer, it is unsurprising that he is taking note.
Injuries to others notwithstanding, some might have questioned the inclusion of Morgan Rogers and Ollie Watkins in the starting line-up given Aston Villa’s poor start to the season. However, both were on the scoresheet before 15 minutes were played after two well-worked set-piece routines, neither of which led immediately to a goal, but with both, England kept the ball alive.
Within two minutes, Rogers did what he could not do in seven Premier League games for his club, netting his first goal of the season and putting in a commanding performance with intelligent movement and persistent runs in behind.
Meanwhile, underlapping runs from full-backs Djed Spence and Ezri Konsa provided Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka with the space to receive multiple passes unchallenged in wide areas, helping to pull Wales’ shape apart and allow England’s wingers to get into dangerous advanced positions.
Without Konsa’s selfless underlapping run in the 20th minute, Saka might not have found the same room to shift the ball onto his left foot to perfectly curl the ball beyond Karl Darlow.
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All of these examples point to the harmony that England are finding in their attacking patterns. This was a team that did not include Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Harry Kane, Jack Grealish, Trent Alexander-Arnold et al, but there was a fluidity to England’s play that was evident from the opening minute.
“Full credit to the team because they bought into the ideas in the last one and a half days, and (they adapted) to the changes that we had to make because until now we only played against deep blocks — this was the first time we were pressed high,” Tuchel said after the game.
“Our deep block was good, our middle block phase was good, our defending and high pressing was excellent in the first half. It takes a lot of selfless work, it takes a lot of teamwork, and we did it again.”
Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson’s midfield understanding looks to be getting stronger, with both taking turns to drop into the back line to support England’s build-up. Equally, the pair dovetailed excellently, with one of Rice or Anderson snapping into challenges in advanced areas as the other protected their midfield partner behind them.
As Tuchel attested, England’s inclination to regain possession was as impressive as their work on the ball. An aggressive counterpress was evident within seconds of losing possession, but Tuchel’s side fell back into a structured shape very well when the initial press was not immediately successful. Both of those attributes are things you expect from a well-trained club side — a team that is committed to their manager’s approach.
“We made four changes today, and they were excellent,” Tuchel said. “I didn’t feel any interruption in our flow and the way we pressed.
“The team was pushing itself and buying into the idea. They love the idea of going after opponents. At the moment, it is very intense, it is very demanding, but it is very effective, and they do it on a high level.
Anderson played well in midfield (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
“I am very delighted with the last two matches. We are on the right way, and it feels like we showed very good behaviour like a club team, and this is what we want to do — this is the feeling we want to create.”
England might have got to the final of the Euros last summer, but each of the performances was stodgy en route to their 2-1 defeat to Spain. They might have had their best players on the pitch at the time, but that does not necessarily guarantee success. It is an old adage, but Thursday’s performance was a reminder that a team’s optimal performances are often decided by playing the best 11 rather than their 11 best.
Former England captain Steven Gerrard provided a timely reminder of how important that statement is this week, when describing their “golden generation” as egotistical losers in their failure to win a major tournament with their country.
“I think it was down to the culture within England that we were all never connected,” he said on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast. “All in our rooms too much. We weren’t friendly or connected. We weren’t a team. We never at any stage became a real good, strong team.”
Tuchel is doing everything in his power to ensure that there is no repeat of those regrets among his own squad next summer. Star names might miss out along the way, but the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts — Thursday’s performance only served to reiterate that.
