ITV Sport pundit Roy Keane felt that some of the comments made by Thomas Tuchel about England and Gareth Southgate at Euro 2024 last summer were a little bit harsh
Roy Keane says Thomas Tuchel was being ‘a bit harsh’ after claiming England had no identity during last summer’s European championship tournament, despite the fact that Gareth Southgate led them all the way to the final.
Tuchel, 51, was the Football Association’s top choice to succeed Southgate, who stood down after England were beaten in the Euro 2024 final by Spain last summer. The German has signed a contract until the summer of 2026 and will attempt to go one better than Southgate in next year’s World Cup.
Ahead of Tuchel’s first game at the helm against Albania on Friday night, he was asked about England’s long wait for a major trophy. When he was asked if England had a clear identity at the Euros, the former Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss said no.
His comments were debated on ITV before Friday night’s game, where Keane admitted he felt Tuchel had a point – even if his words were a bit brutal. He said: “It seems a bit harsh, because obviously they won a few football matches over there, and there were a lot of teams that had a good identity, (but) they came back before England.
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“It’s well and good talking a good game, they’ve got to perform. But yeah, seems a bit harsh on Gareth (Southgate), but I know where he’s coming from, a certain style of play, they were heavily criticised despite winning football matches, but I still think we shouldn’t get away from Gareth doing a good job with England.”
Ian Wright, also analysing the game, had more sympathy for Tuchel. He pointed out that English is his second language, saying: “It’s his second language, I think he’s just very honest, brutally honest about what he was saying.
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“Remember, we changed our midfield something like three times, so maybe that’s what he’s looking at. The way he has spoken about it doesn’t sound great, but I think that he was right, we didn’t (have a clear style).
“By the time we got to the final, we knew exactly how Spain were going to play, we weren’t quite sure how we were. So maybe that’s what he was on about.”
It was during an interview on ITV – released on the eve of his Three Lions bow – that Tuchel was asked for his thoughts on England’s performance at Euro 2024. When he was asked what Southgate’s side lacked during said tournament, he replied: “The identity, the clarity, the rhythm, the repetition of patterns. The freedom of player, the expression of player, the hunger.
“They were more afraid to drop out of the tournament, in my observation, than having the excitement and hunger to win.”
Watching on from the sidelines at Wembley, Tuchel saw his team make the perfect start against a resolute Albania, with debutant Myles Lewis-Skelly plundering a fine goal after a majestic pass from Jude Bellingham, who bossed proceedings for the Three Lions. Harry Kane scored England’s second goal late in the second half to cap a fine debut for Tuchel.
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