Coach Tuchel: ‘England should accept the underdog role at the 2026 World Cup’

Coach Thomas Tuchel believes England will be stronger if they embrace the underdog status instead of considering themselves favorites to win the 2026 World Cup.

Tuchel suggests that the England team should not view themselves as the top contenders for the 2026 World Cup title. He thinks the team from the land of the fog would be more powerful if they accept the underdog position and relieve themselves from the heavy expectations of fans.

Tuchel points out that although England reached the EURO finals twice in a row, they have yet to prove themselves as a top team on the global stage, with their last World Cup trophy nearly 60 years ago.

Speaking before the World Cup qualifying match against Wales early on October 10 (Vietnam time), Tuchel was straightforward. “If you have never won Wimbledon, you might be among the contenders, but not the highest rated. Then there are Brazil, Argentina, Spain, France – teams who have recently won. We have a chance, but we need to see our true standing,” he said.

The German coach stressed that England needs to approach the 2026 World Cup campaign with caution and realism. “We have to take it step by step, first by qualifying. When we get there, we know our purpose. The key is to build a team that opponents respect, rather than putting pressure on ourselves to win,” Tuchel shared.

Regarding the high expectations from experts about England, Tuchel calmly stated: “That’s not my concern. We go to the World Cup to win, but we must do it in a way that people won’t be disappointed if the results don’t meet expectations.”

He revealed that after the 5-0 victory over Serbia, fan attitudes changed significantly as they began to trust the team more. Additionally, Tuchel mentioned Steven Gerrard’s critique calling England’s “golden generation” “selfish failures,” and noted that divisions among major clubs once caused the team to miss big opportunities.

With a realistic perspective, Coach Thomas Tuchel hopes England will enter the 2026 World Cup with humility and awareness of their position, because only by shedding the burden of expectations can they truly advance far.