England’s extraordinary victory over Mexico might take some time to distill. The final whistle at the Azteca had an ethereal quality about it, leaving us unsure whether we were joined in a wild cortisol hit or simply dreaming.
The meaning of the result, if not the emotions surrounding it, is easier to fathom. For it to move beyond instant gratification and acquire lasting significance, England have to be better in Miami, where the return to sea level presents a different kind of altitude problem, all 10 thousand feet of him.
Indeed, should Thomas Tuchel fashion a plan to conquer Norway’s highest peak, Mount Haaland, the gradient rises again, most likely taking in Lionel Messi in Atlanta and, the fates willing, Kylian Mbappe in New York.
England manager Thomas Tuchel is starting to show his tactical elitism at this World Cup (Photo: Getty)
Tuchel is adept at organisation, form and function. He can set up a team to stop others, but keeping the likes of Haaland, Messi and Mbappe garrisoned for 90 minutes is unlikely at a World Cup. To rise higher, Tuchel will have to set the opposition problems of their own, to unleash something in England he has yet to manifest.
