Head coach believes ‘competition for places is on’
Bellingham, Palmer and Foden all still to come back
Thomas Tuchel has insisted he is brave enough to omit star names from his England XI if it better balances the team. The head coach feels competition for places has increased after the 5-0 World Cup qualifying win against Serbia in Belgrade on Tuesday – especially in the No 10 role.
Tuchel watched Morgan Rogers produce an outstanding performance in the position, the Aston Villa player’s best moment being the first-time flick that sent Noni Madueke through to score the second goal. Roy Keane, who covered the game for ITV, compared Rogers to Paul Gascoigne in terms of the X factor he provides.
Tuchel had brought Rogers into the lineup at the expense of Eberechi Eze, who was the No 10 in the 2-0 home victory against Andorra on Saturday. Tuchel, who named a slimmed-down 24‑man squad for the fixtures, had Morgan Gibbs-White on the bench. Jude Bellingham, Cole Palmer and Phil Foden, the bigger-name options for the role, missed out because of fitness issues.
