For Thomas Tuchel there is a fringe benefit to Anthony Gordon’s surprise move from Newcastle to Barcelona. “It is excellent,” the England manager said. “It is such a nice trip for me to watch matches. I can only encourage people to go to nice places.”’
Tuchel was in playful mood after England’s first World Cup warm-up match on Saturday – the 1-0 win over New Zealand in Tampa – even if he was not happy with aspects of the performance. It was wholly one-sided but, time and again, his team’s final action was uninspiring. Tuchel complained that his players lacked positional discipline and as a consequence the shape was too narrow, especially in the first half.
Tuchel changed the entire XI for the second period – load management was the theme – with Gordon replacing Marcus Rashford on the left-wing, and it is certainly a quirky situation when it comes to the pair. Rashford has just finished a good season on loan at Barcelona from Manchester United and he would like to make the move permanent. There is a €30m (£26m) option-to-buy clause in the deal, which United have insisted is non-negotiable. Barcelona have wanted to negotiate. So imagine how Rashford felt when Barcelona paid €70m plus €10m in add-ons for his direct rival in the England team. “It is a slight quirk,” Tuchel said, still smiling. “Let’s see what Barcelona decides and what Marcus decides.”
The real benefit for Tuchel and England from Gordon’s transfer is the ratcheting up of the competition between him and Rashford. It talks to one of the fundamentals of Tuchel’s blueprint for World Cup glory – positional clarity. There is always room for a little flexibility but Tuchel has offered the impression that there ought not to be too much. He wants his players in their best roles, no square pegs in round holes, no trying to jam in the best 11 individuals, Lampard/Gerrard style. Broadly, it is two for every outfield position and Tuchel has effectively set up a series of one-on-one battles. One of the hardest to call before the opener against Croatia in Dallas on 17 June is Gordon v Rashford.
Tuchel has gone above and beyond with his support of Rashford since he became head coach. He did not have to recall him from the international wilderness in March 2025 when he named his first squad for the qualifiers against Albania and Latvia. Rashford was on loan at Aston Villa and had started only once for them in the Premier League, scoring no goals. Tuchel could have waited until the next international window in June to work with the player. There was no pressure to pick him. But Tuchel did so because he wanted to harness sparks of positivity from Rashford, to jumpstart their relationship. He wanted to show him he believed he could recapture his prime levels. It was a classic Tuchel man-management move, rooted in driving momentum. Whenever Rashford has been fit, Tuchel has included him.
Rashford was in the mood against New Zealand. Like Gordon, he wants to cut inside on to his stronger right foot. Was he a part of the structural problem that Tuchel bemoaned? But there was plenty to like about the 28-year-old to the point that he was probably England’s best player. He created a game-high five chances. On the debit side was his shooting: when he had a couple of sightings, Rashford should have been quicker and more accurate. Gordon, by contrast, could get little going during his 45 minutes.
Tuchel’s allocation of roles within his squad is well defined on other levels. There is a group of players, for example, who must “finish matches for us, get the energy right and have more the role of setting the standards and accepting their roles for challenging [for places].” He said there were “14 or 15 potential starters”. The nailed-on picks appear to be Jordan Pickford, Reece James, Marc Guéhi, Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson, Bukayo Saka and Harry Kane. Which leaves some fighting to be done – and not only between Gordon and Rashford.
Is Jude Bellingham battling for the starting No 10 role? “Yes, he is,” Tuchel replied. “He is one of the [group of] starters … he knows that. In my head there are 14, 15 proper starters and Jude is one of them.”
Bellingham’s rival is Morgan Rogers, who started against New Zealand and did not shine. Bellingham replaced him for the second half and did, bringing flashes of incision and a lot of energy; that trademark dominance on the ball. He looked as if he wanted to prove a point after missing the March internationals as he completed his rehabilitation from a serious hamstring injury. Tuchel loves Rogers, partly for his work out of possession, but there is a reason why Bellingham is a global superstar. The either/or choice between them is another major teaser.
Tuchel will fine-tune further in the friendly against Costa Rica in Orlando on Wednesday and it will be interesting to see which players he favours with the bulk of the minutes because he will not use two separate XIs this time.
There is no dispute about who is the first name on Tuchel’s teamsheet. Kane took his record England tally to 79 with the winner against New Zealand and the worry is that the team relies too heavily on him for goals; there is not enough competition for him. Tuchel was asked whether it could go on like this because Kane surely cannot always do the scoring. His response was to channel his inner Mick McCarthy. “He can,” said the German. “He absolutely can. I understand the concern. I am not concerned. We will be strong in set pieces and when the spaces open up a little more against teams who will actually want to beat us, we will be good.”
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