“The target is to win the [2026] World Cup. We will build on everything that Gareth [Southgate] and the FA built and hopefully we can add a little bit of extra to get it over the line,” Thomas Tuchel said at his first press conference as England manager. “We will try to install values and principles and rules as quickly as possible to make the dream come true.”
Southgate came closer than anyone to delivering the country’s first piece of silverware since 1966, reaching back-to-back European Championship finals as well as the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, but wasn’t equipped to make that final step. His conservative tactics and blind loyalty to certain players held England back when it really mattered.
Tuchel holds similar values when it comes to selection, saying: “We will maybe not choose the 26 best individual players, but the best group that supports each other.” However, the German coach also stressed the importance of having a squad that “builds a certain atmosphere and one that can make us overperform”.
That brings us to Harry Kane. At 31, the current England captain remains a model professional and world-class footballer, as he proved again in Sunday’s 5-0 Nations League rout of Ireland. But the harsh truth is, the Three Lions won’t be able to “overperform” and make their World Cup “dream” a reality in Canada, Mexico and the United States if Kane is still leading the line.