England head coach Thomas Tuchel insisted there is no issue between him and Jude Bellingham, saying the pair are “closer than ever before” after the midfielder appeared to take exception to his criticism following the quarterfinal victory over Norway.
After England’s 2-1 extra-time win over Norway, Tuchel described his side as “sloppy” and “lucky”, saying the Three Lions had not been good enough “in every sense” despite reaching the FIFA World Cup semifinals. Responding to those remarks, Bellingham had said, “Yeah, well, whatever. It’s difficult out there – it’s a tough shift.”
Tuchel says comments were taken out of context
Ahead of England’s semifinal against Argentina, Tuchel revealed he addressed the squad the following day to clear the air and dismissed suggestions of any tension with the Real Madrid midfielder.
“I wonder who blows these things up, eh? So, there is nothing to blow up and if it’s blown up, it’s blown up in the media, of course,” Tuchel told talkSPORT.
“What do you expect of a player that just played 120 minutes and gave literally everything if you shorten the comment of his coach, if you don’t tell him that ‘he was world class’, if you don’t tell him that ‘he has world class actions’? If you just cut all this and tell him, ‘Oh, your coach said you were sloppy,’ what do you expect?”
Reports had suggested the relationship between Tuchel and Bellingham had been strained since the German took charge of England last year. The tension was said to have stemmed from Tuchel’s criticism of the midfielder’s reaction to being substituted during a match against Albania, although the pair reportedly resolved the matter in a meeting earlier this year.
Tuchel insisted their relationship is now stronger than ever.
“We’re as close as ever, and closer than ever before. You can see that on the field. The energy and mentality in camp has been excellent over the last few days, and we are ready to go for it tomorrow,” he said.