All managers of England like to influence their first meaningful working day – and we have waited a while for Thomas Tuchel's.
But there would have been no money that Jordan Henderson had handed a route from the football whimpernis for the double header of next week of World Cup qualifications against Albania and Latvia in Wembley.
Tuchel has less than 18 months to put together a team to win the World Cup in the summer of 2026. Henderson – recently arrested in Ajax after his disastrous move to Saudi -Aarabia – will be 36 by that time. Is this really the way forward for the new head coach of England? It is difficult to say that it is and the will of Conor Gallagher-seen scoring in the last 16 of the Champions League for Atletico Madrid this week and Morgan Gibbs-White Die is the lights for Nottingham Forest Moet to do hard to make Tuchel's list.
There are other big calls on the magazine. Marcus Rashford is back after his revival in Aston Villa, while the Newcastle -defender than Burn is for the first time – called by Mail Sport's Chief Football Reporter Craig Hope on Thursday evening. Dominic Solanke has also been given a place for Oilie Watkins and Ivan Toney.
But it is in the central midfield where Tuchel made his first really big call. His predecessor Gareth Southgate and indeed Lee Carsley, who supervised the Nations League qualifications on an interim basis, often spoke about the problem of England in number six position -or 'pivot' as he used to call it.
Arsenal's Declan Rice is first chosen in that position, but the disappearance of Kalvin Phillips has left a hole. Carsley tried Angel Gomes van Lille, while Kobbie Mainoo from Manchester United was known in last summer's European championships.
But with Gomes overlooked and Mainoo injured, it is difficult to see how a player like Gallagher does not make this selection.
Henderson's time at Ajax has been less than spectacular and his recent minutes in the Amsterdam club have not been overwhelming. Indeed, the last time we really saw him was in January when he collided with a Dutch reporter who had accused him of insisting on a transfer window to Monaco.
There is no doubt about Henderson's dedication to England. The former captain of Liverpool was a mainstay, a quiet and intelligent presence in the heart of the midfield of England for many years when they made progress in the euro of 2021 and indeed the World Cup of Qatar followed that.
The 34-year-old was a permanent member of the leadership group of Southgate and a voice in the dressing room of England that everyone would listen to. But his move to Saudi in the summer of 2023 saw him drop the map. It has been known for a while that he would welcome a move back to the Premier League, but there were no acceptable offers future and perhaps that tells a lot.
But he is now back at England and Tuchel will live or die because of that decision. To incorrectly quote a famous Sir Alex Ferguson: 'Boys, it is only Albania and Latvia' and it is true that England must be comfortable through these two games, whoever sends Tuchel in white,
But in terms of Henderson and the World Cup of 2026, it is much more difficult to complain to the circle. Tuchel – all the way back in October – has delivered his first microphone moment.
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