‘Dead rubbers’ have rarely had so much riding on them. England have two over the next five days — and although they are inconsequential in terms of World Cup qualification, they represent key moments for Thomas Tuchel.
England’s place in next summer’s tournament is already secured, and so the results of Thursday's home fixture against Serbia and away match in Albania three days later matter little, but these games will have a big bearing on who joins Tuchel and the core of the squad in six months' time.
The England head coach has already made it clear that he will choose the best team, rather than the best players, as he sets out his stall ahead of the World Cup he has been tasked with winning. That means finding and deploying the strongest variation of his structured 4-3-3 system.
It was in Belgrade in September, when England won 5-0, that Tuchel first struck upon a convincing formula. That carried on with less spectacular but still promising performances in victories over Wales and Latvia.
If defence and midfield are starting to look rather settled, then it’s England’s attack that still throws up the questions — undoubtedly from a position of strength, though.
Finding the right tactical balance is at the forefront of Tuchel’s mind as he’s wary of cramming too many attackers into his lineups. Now, he has more at his disposal than ever.
Having one No.10 behind Harry Kane and fast wingers supporting the England captain is the preferred option, and Morgan Rogers has impressed in that position, but must now contend with Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden back in the squad and fighting for that same spot.
On Wednesday, Tuchel labelled Foden as a ‘nine-and-a-half’ and suggested he views him as Kane’s understudy, given the lack of other striker options in the squad.
“He likes it [playing in the middle] and he also has no choice,” Tuchel said with a laugh. “He has no choice; this is the role he gets for this camp, and he makes the most of it.
“I think he loves to be close to goal. I think he loves to be in the middle of the pitch, so I think it suits him good.”
Though most notably, Tuchel noted he thinks Kane, Foden and Bellingham “cannot” all play together in the current system. “At the moment, if we keep the structure, they cannot play,” he told TalkSport.
“They can but not in the structure, not for the balance that we developed and not for structure that comes also with wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine.”
That certainly will have sounded the starting gun for players to put forward their case. Bellingham and Rogers, it seems, are in a two-way tussle for that No. 10 spot. The pair have been close since they played for England under-15s.
“Rather than finding a position for the best players to just have them on the field, it’s better to have them in their best position and have a competition,” said Tuchel. “At the moment, the competition is between the two of them.
“They are friends, it can also be a friendly competition – they don’t have to be enemies, they don’t have to hate each other. They are respectful, they are friends and can fight for the position. Can they play together? Yes, but in a different structure. At the moment it is not time to change our structure.”
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'Our decisions will always put team first'
The lineup against Serbia will be very interesting, then. Albeit Bellingham and Foden were given extra recovery time after playing on Sunday, they will only have one training session ahead of the match, which could benefit Rogers.
Competition for those forward attacking roles will also come from Eberechi Eze, along with Cole Palmer and Morgan Gibbs-White, who were omitted because of injury and not selected, respectively.
“There’s a lot of players and there’s the chance that we will not take everyone,” Tuchel continued. “Not because we don’t like it, not because they don’t individually deserve it, but we will always do what’s best for the team, we will always do what’s best for winning.
“We will always do what’s best for balance, and we will try to keep the clarity, even if it means that we have to take tough decisions. We take tough decisions in any camp, and this will not change when we go to a tournament.”
The player in possession of the shirt when the music stops could well get the job, and with just four games to go before Tuchel names his provisional World Cup squad, there aren’t many strains left.
But different opponents present different challenges, and multiple options are likely to be needed if England are to realise their dreams. Discipline, high standards and a strong bond are what Tuchel wants in his group.
“What we are trying is to build a strong bond, an energy, a group to build a brotherhood that everyone wants to join,” Tuchel explained. “We want to create a competition where if I pull out of a 50/50 situation, the door will be closed, as someone else will take the shirt.
“Not as a threat, but that everyone is keen to come, loves to perform for the country as it is an honour and the last step of elite football – to represent England in a World Cup. It is the pinnacle. This is how it should feel.
“We are absolutely on the way, everyone wants to be part of the camps, and nobody has given signals that it is time to rest – and we also wouldn’t accept it. So it is an energy that feeds itself. That is the key – everyone loves to be in camp and enjoys it.”
Dead rubbers? No chance. These are crucial days for Tuchel and England.
