In the friendly against Wales, the English national team put in a convincing performance early on, but their own fans were not impressed. Thomas Tuchel subsequently criticized the atmosphere at Wembley.
Morgan Rogers put the English national team ahead after just three minutes in their 3-0 friendly win over Wales, with further goals from Ollie Watkins (11th minute) and Bukayo Saka (20th minute) soon following. “We were 3-0 up very quickly and could even have been 4-0 or 5-0 up at half-time,” Thomas Tuchel said, looking back on the “excellent first half” on ITV. It was all the more disappointing that the fans at Wembley still failed to get behind the team. “The stadium was quiet. We didn’t get any energy back from the stands,“ said the Three Lions coach, who would have liked to see more support from his own fans: ”What more can you give than three goals in 20 minutes and the way we attacked Wales and didn’t let them escape? Even in their half, we won the ball back time and time again.”
Tuchel was pleased that the team secured its sixth win in the seventh game of his tenure – and also played convincingly for long periods. However, he couldn’t resist another dig at the home fans: “When you only hear Wales fans for half an hour, it’s sad, because I think the team deserved great support today.”
In contrast to previous games – such as the 5-0 home win over Serbia – the atmosphere on Thursday evening was not “absolutely fantastic” from the German’s point of view. Tuchel emphasized this at the subsequent press conference: “I love English soccer and English soccer fans and the support they give, but I think the atmosphere today didn’t match our performance on the pitch.”
Despite all the disappointment, however, the coach was certain that he and his team would “get everyone excited” in the future: “We will do everything we can to be infectious again,” Tuchel said resolutely. The Three Lions’ next opportunity to put this plan into action at Wembley will not be until November 13 against Serbia (8:45 p.m.). Meanwhile, Tuchel’s team will be in action in Latvia on Tuesday, looking to secure their sixth win in six World Cup qualifiers (8:45 p.m.) and seal their place at the World Cup.
