Tuchel’s first England XI predicted as German expected to ditch the youngsters

THOMAS TUCHEL has one task: win the World Cup.

It is wishful thinking to believe that the new England manager will be mainly concerned about bleeding more young players.

The fact that Tuchel's contract is for 18 months only underlines that it is all about the present and not the future.

He officially starts work on January 1 and although he has exchanged text messages with Lee Carsley, the pair will meet for the first time in the new year.

They will reflect on Carsley's six games as interim manager.

With the draw for the World Cup qualifiers on December 13, they can make plans for 2025.

While Sunday's 5-0 win over Ireland showcased some of England's rising stars, expect many of them to either take a back seat or return to the Under-21s with Carsley.

Tuchel will certainly have experience to call on as he builds towards the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones will certainly feature under the German.

Left-footed left-back Lewis Hall, a rare breed in England, also has a chance in the next team, along with Morgan Rogers and Noni Madueke.

But Morgan Gibbs-White, Tino Livramento and Taylor Harwood-Bellis will all have to be patient. Angel Gomes, currently at French club Lille, is out of contract at the end of the season and if he wants to stay on Tuchel's radar he may have to return to the Premier League.

What will be a hallmark of the Tuchel regime is the German preference to stick with proven internationals who all played a part in the Gareth Southgate era.

Harry Maguire, dropped from Carsley's second team, is certain to return.

Provided he can resolve his various ailments, left-back Luke Shaw will be parachuted into Tuchel's starting XI, as long as he doesn't re-injure himself upon landing.

If he has some injury problems in central defense, it would hardly be a surprise if Tuchel turned to Eric Dier, who he signed from Tottenham in January when he was still manager of Bayern Munich.

The 30-year-old Dier, who often kept Matthijs de Ligt out of Bayern's team, is said to be ready to be thrown into a Three Lions squad.

The same goes for midfielder Mason Mount, provided he finally overcomes his form and injury problems at Manchester United.

Under Tuchel, while manager of Chelsea, Mount provided the assist for Kai Havertz's Champions League winner in the 2021 final against Manchester City.

Even if he can get by under new United manager Ruben Amorim, Marcus Rashford could still have a chance of returning to England.

Rashford's relationship with the international team was uneasy – and he often frustrated Southgate with his injury withdrawals before playing in the next United match – but a record 17 goals in 60 caps will not go unnoticed by Tuchel. And he's only 27.

It is clear that the biggest challenge for Tuchel will be to find the right balance in midfield.

We won't see a repeat of Carsley's decision to try and put Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Anthony Gordon and Cole Palmer in the same starting line-up as he did in the 2-1 home defeat to Greece.

'YOU HAVE A LOT OF GOOD PLAYERS'

Interestingly, Carsley admitted that other national coaches believe this embarrassment of riches in one specific area is actually a problem for England.

He said: “A lot of the international coaches at that UEFA event I went to, during the Euro 2024 debriefing, said, 'You've got a lot of good players', as if that's a negative thing.

“If they're all in form at exactly the same time then it's a challenge, but players do come in and out of form.”

Tuchel knows he will have to get a firm grip on the team.

The fact that Jack Grealish and Bellingham took to social media to praise Carsley – while making pointed comments at Southgate – illustrates that modern players can be difficult to please and also have short memories.

CAPTAIN DILEMMA

High on Tuchel's to-do list will be the captaincy.

The fact that Tuchel signed Harry Kane from Spurs shows exactly what he thinks of the country's record goalscorer, and the pair have a close bond.

Whether Kane is a good captain is up for debate and Tuchel's take on this will be fascinating.

Many believe Bellingham should be England's next leader, but Declan Rice – who appears to be more of a team player – might be better.

Either way, whether it's Kane, Bellingham or Rice who lifts the trophy after the World Cup final, no one will care.

But whether Tuchel can get the team that far remains to be seen.

There is no doubt that the German is about to face the biggest challenge of his career.