Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Phil Foden could be Harry Kane’s main back-up at the World Cup under four conditions, England head coach Thomas Tuchel has revealed.
Three lions They won their partial World Cup qualifier at Wembley on Thursday night, beating Serbia 2-0 thanks to goals from Bocko Saka and Ibarchie Eze.
England were far from their best against Serbia, but they did enough to earn a clean sheet and another victory against a poor opponent.
Thomas TuchelExperimented with his players as he used Foden as a false nine for the final 25 minutes and it worked well, with the Man City star setting up Eze for England’s sensational second goal.
With England lacking a suitable back-up to Kane, Foden or another left-field option could be used instead of Ollie Watkins or Danny Welbeck.
Speaking after the Serbia match, Tuchel opened the door to using Foden as a striker at the World Cup on four conditions.
“It’s a completely different opportunity if Phil stays in this shape and form. I have a few other options in mind which I don’t want to talk about publicly. Don’t forget we don’t have Ollie Watkins and a couple of other 9s apart from Harry.”
READ: England 2-0 Serbia Player ratings: Bellingham, Foden, claims from bench
“It will come down to who is in form, who we have in the squad, the opponents we play and what we want from the match.”
On Kane and Foden’s performance, he added: “It was a good match for (Foden). Harry dropped a bit deeper than usual today because they had three midfielders who wanted to close down our three midfielders. The chances and pace in the game came from Harry’s long passes.
“With Phil, you see he’s full of confidence. When you meet him in camp, from the first minutes. The first touches are fine, his movement. He can play against any opponent in that position.
“I want to put him in the middle of the pitch, surrounded by close links with other players. He did well.”
More England coverage on F365…
👉 Responding to Bellingham’s question about Rashford’s missed chance, Foden simplifies England’s Kane problem
👉 Tuchel gives ‘brutal ultimatum’ to Arsenal star as ‘next Bokio Saka’ sparks transfer frenzy
👉 England: Tuchel names PL star ‘very close’ to call-up; Reveals Who Bellingham ‘Can’t Play With’
Tuchel also praised Man City star Nico O’Reilly, who impressed from the start at left-back.
“We have built a core of leaders in the team who push the standards and create a welcoming environment for the new players in the camp to be the best version of themselves.”
“Nico had an amazing debut. He seems very shy but he is very intelligent on the pitch and has adapted so well to all the new things we have asked of him.
“That’s only possible if you feel good in the group and that’s full credit to everyone.”
