Tuchel Affirms No Problem with Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, or Grealish

Press Caption: Tuchel discussing Jude Bellingham

Thomas Tuchel has declared that he holds "no problem" with Jack Grealish following these players were left out the England team for forthcoming fixtures against Wales and Latvia.

The midfielder did not earn a recall despite recovering from a shoulder issue, whereas Foden and Grealish are also absent although displaying a return to form with their clubs.

The German manager mentioned that Bellingham wanted to be part of the selection, after a conversation with him on the phone.

"Bellingham is a special player, and for exceptional talents there can always be exceptions," the coach remarked regarding Bellingham, who has made just one start since coming back to full health.

"But we opted to maintain the straightforward choice of calling up the identical squad.

"Bellingham consistently merits to be here. There is the factor that he has not quite found his full rhythm yet at Real Madrid - he has not completed a full match.

"He wanted to be called up. We conducted a telephone conversation."

Tuchel was keen to highlight his good rapport with the midfielder following he said sorry to him earlier this year for describing his on-pitch behavior as "repulsive" in a televised interview.

Tuchel stated that he used the words "unintentionally" and would be more careful going forward.

When asked if he had any issue with the player, he responded: "No. There is no issue either with Phil Foden or Grealish.

"Foden is returning to influencing and deciding games for his club. Grealish is almost to being back to the best version of himself.

"There is no personal problem."

Saka taking the place of the hurt Noni Madueke is the only change to last month's team, with Loftus-Cheek and Quansah retaining their places after joining as late additions last month due to fitness concerns.

England play Wales in a friendly at Wembley on Thursday before a qualifying match in the Latvian capital on 14 October.

If England win in Latvia, they will need a up to two points from their final two matches - against Serbia and Albania in next month - to secure a spot in the upcoming tournament in North America.

Impressive Display Under Tuchel

The Three Lions delivered their finest performance significantly under the manager's guidance when they beat the Serbian team five-nil away in Belgrade in their previous match.

Tuchel stated that showing meant it an easy decision to keep mostly the same squad, though "there exist absolutely no guarantees" for any player regarding selection.

"Our previous gathering was just a few weeks ago and the cohesion and morale was on the highest level. That is why we decided to call up the same group to this camp," he commented.

"Phil is in a excellent run of form. Adam Wharton deserves to be with us. Curtis Jones and Chalobah are earning playing time with their clubs.

"There are players who warrant to be here. Cole Palmer is injured and is a special player. It will always be like this.

"Are we a better team with Bellingham? Absolutely. But I mentioned before, what do we do if he is injured before the World Cup? Do we just cancel?"

Tuchel's Press Conference Gets Noticed

The England manager again delivered a headline-grabbing news conference.

Tuchel, a master of handling his relationship with the media, started with an initial remarks to set out his thinking for his selections.

Bellingham is fit and available and expressed interest to join to the squad, but the coach has said he preferred not to change the team too much after a statement five-goal win over their opponents - where the boss said team spirit was extremely strong.

However with him not including the star, and his frequent comments about team spirit, it is difficult to avoid connect the aspects - although he said repeatedly how he is "special" and that there is "no issue" between him and one of England's key talents.

The England manager has always made it clear that he wanted to make the national team feel like a club team and, by keeping the identical selection after a big victory, he has achieved that. But the inquiries will arise once more in the next camp if the team win well in these next two matches.

Stephen Zimmerman
Stephen Zimmerman

A tech enthusiast and business strategist with over a decade of experience in digital transformation and startup ecosystems.