New Era of Three Lions, What's the Difference Between Tuchel and Southgate?

Not much different from the Gareth Southgate era. That was the first impression during coach Thomas Tuchel's debut with the England national team. The "Three Lions" still played in a slow and cautious manner, not yet resembling what was promised during the pre-match press conference.

Tuchel acknowledged this despite winning 2-0 against Albania in the group stage qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. The coach was slightly disappointed for failing to entertain the approximately 80,000 spectators who came to Wembley Stadium. "The match earlier was not the most exciting to watch," he said.

Expectations for the German man are very high. Tuchel is the first non-English coach since Fabio Capello (2008-2012). It is rare for them to set aside pride in local coaches for the sake of achievement. However, that pride has also diminished due to the ambition for success.

Tuchel raised those expectations before the match. In addition to promising positive results, he also vowed to restore the character of English football. That character is inspired by the playing style in the Premier League, which is synonymous with physical duels, aggressiveness, and a fast tempo.

Extra-high intensity is the main requirement of the former Chelsea coach. The Three Lions are expected to touch the ball as much as possible in the opponent's penalty box and regain possession as quickly as possible in the opponent's half. Tuchel adheres to the principle that attacking is the best form of defense.

However, Harry Kane and his teammates have not yet been able to fully translate Tuchel's ideas. Instead of playing like English Premier League clubs, they resemble a team from the Southgate era. The gameplay is too passive, with numerous horizontal passes and a lack of dynamic movement.

England indeed dominated possession with 74.2 percent, but only managed to produce 12 shots. The Three Lions frequently played the ball in the defensive area. This is evident from the number of accurate passes by defender Dan Burn (135 times), which is approximately six times more than Kane (22 times) as the forward.

According to Tuchel, there is still a lot that can be improved. Especially on the wings, filled by Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden, who are less aggressive. In addition, he considered, England's original style did not come out because it was blocked by the opponent's playing style. "The opponent defended very deep and it was difficult to break down," he said.

Albania always defended in their own half when they lost the ball. They only pressed aggressively when England entered the final third. When the ball changed possession, the visitors immediately sent a long ball to start the transition. England struggled to find space.

"We came with a clear idea of how we wanted to play. We stuck to that principle for as long as we could even though it's difficult against a very defensive team. We had to move them around to get space," said England midfielder Jude Bellingham.

England's game may not have changed drastically, but the intention of change is already visible. They are more aggressive and collective in pressing opponents after losing the ball. Rashford, who was known to be lazy when he was at Manchester United, is always involved in his team's "dirty" work.

That aggression meant Albania didn’t develop. The visitors returned without a single shot on target. “They were very strong with strong players physically. We planned to look for counter-attacks, but it didn’t work at all,” said Albania Head Coach Sylvinho.

As a result, England were able to dominate absolutely, especially in the first half. They created 437 passes before half-time. That number is the most in Opta's records for all matches in all competitions. Albania could not even produce 100 passes.

Before the match, Tuchel had criticized England's game in the Southgate era. Precisely at the 2024 German European Cup, when they lost in the final. According to him, England failed to win because they were too cautious. The fear of losing was greater than the desire to win.

Tuchel proved his point. England did not let up at all after taking an early lead in the 20th minute. They were even more offensive in the second half with their defensive line still very high. Full-backs Kyle Walker and Myles Lewis-Skelly were instructed to move forward.

It was a departure from Southgate's pragmatic approach. Previously, England played a more wait-and-see approach after taking the lead. The defensive line was also slightly lowered. Southgate often relied on a mid-block defensive scheme when he wanted to maintain the lead.

Tuchel promised, they will definitely be better in the next match. "I will understand the players better. Where is their best position? Why are they struggling? From there, we can improve to play with a high tempo and be more dangerous in front of goal," he concluded.

The intense football that Tuchel wants has not been clearly visible. However, the English public may just need to be patient. As Three Lions midfielder Declan Rice said, the team has only trained together for four days under Tuchel. They are adapting and will only get better in the future. (AP/REUTERS)