In the case of Marc Guéhi, a fleeting spark of uncertainty was natural. The Crystal Palace centre‑half had excelled for England at the European Championships, establishing himself as a key selection under Gareth Southgate, and his standing remained intact after Lee Carsley’s spell in the first half of last season.
Enter the new boss, which is worth remembering that this was the coach who had approved Guéhi’s transfer from Chelsea to Palace in the offseason of 2021. Guéhi certainly remembered that. Was Tuchel fancy him? When the fresh leadership brought Dan Burn into the lineup for his first game in charge, against Albania at Wembley in March, with Guéhi as an unused substitute, it wasn’t promising.
Tuchel selected Guéhi in the next game, against Latvia, again at Wembley, before he was unable to select him for his next gathering in June, which included the fixtures against Andorra away and Senegal in Nottingham. Guéhi had sustained an eye injury during Palace’s memorable FA Cup final win over Manchester City.
“I’d say it’s normal for any footballer to almost question that,” Guéhi says, reflecting on his absence against Albania. “As you’d expect, fresh coach coming in … who knows what the squad’s going to look like, it’s unknown who is going to play?”
The thing Guéhi did next was exactly what he always does – remain completely in the moment, as balanced as possible. This approach would serve him well during a dramatic end to the offseason window when the club chairman, Steve Parish, prevented his planned move to Liverpool.
The next day, Guéhi joined up with England for the games versus Andorra at Villa Park and Serbia in Belgrade and he trained like a man possessed. Not a soul would have been aware about any personal doubts. It is difficult not to see that camp and those games as a pivotal moment for Guéhi, the time when he won Tuchel around. The 25-year-old was selected in both and was particularly impressive in the 5-0 win against Serbia, even contributing his maiden strike for his country.
The trust works both ways. Tuchel has this knack of drawing players in, of empowering them; it was one of the main factors why the Football Association appointed him. “In my view what the manager has achieved is show a lot of belief in each of us,” Guéhi says. “Whenever we receive the chance, we want to display what we can do.”
Belief as the Theme
Trust is the focus – and not just because Guéhi is the child of a church minister and devoutly Christian. England face Wales in a friendly at Wembley on Thursday night before traveling to Riga to face Latvia in their sixth World Cup qualifier next Tuesday and Tuchel has shaped it all with his squad selection.
It was, simply, the most stunning show of support in the players from the previous camp, those who had traveled to Serbia and sparked Tuchel’s reign. Each of the 24 who are fit have been kept – so not Tino Livramento or Noni Madueke, who have serious injuries. Or Reece James, who was forced to pull out on Monday because of a less serious one.
The Manager’s Decisions and Team Unity
Tuchel’s choice to omit the returned Jude Bellingham has dominated the discourse – to the extent that the exclusion of Phil Foden, who is also fully recovered, has been rendered as a bit of a afterthought.
That which must not be ignored – and what Tuchel does not want ignored – is how he has supported Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who was a last-minute addition in September to replace the hurt Adam Wharton, despite Loftus-Cheek having lost his spot in Milan’s Serie A side. Or how he kept Jarell Quansah, who stepped up for the unavailable John Stones in September, although the latter now being OK and in the group. Though, Quansah himself was forced to withdraw on Wednesday because of a knock.
This is how a manager builds a meritocracy, how he builds bonds. Tuchel admired the team behind the team in Serbia, the unsung heroes on the sidelines, and he aimed to recognize them. Bellingham or Loftus‑Cheek? Is that a question? Tuchel has essentially turned it into one for this session – and he sees an positive in the signal he has delivered. Reputations will not influence him. Being a good teammate will.
Creating a Strong Unit
It was with good timing that Steven Gerrard spoke candidly in an interview with his former England colleague Rio Ferdinand on Tuesday, disclosing how egotistical and divided their much-hyped golden generation squad was. The ability was not in question; it was the environment that limited them and Tuchel is determined to fix this. He was talking about a “brotherhood” within the squad before his initial match.
“There isn’t any animosity between anyone,” Guéhi says. “We are, as we put it when we’re here, Team England. Whatever has happened in the before or whatever is occurring in the campaign, you put that aside. You come here, these are your best friends, your colleagues, the players that you go to war with for however long you’re here.
“The atmosphere is always positive when we’re here. The FA, past coaches and the players themselves, the staff, have performed a fantastic job at creating an atmosphere. Additionally, it comes down to the players to actually buy into that. In my opinion every single person has bought into that brilliantly because I love so much being here and I am sure the rest of the players do, too.”
Future Focus
What Tuchel wants versus Wales is a performance that excites the Wembley fans. Those against Albania and Latvia were solid sufficient; the wins positive, the initial progress on the road to the World Cup next year. But they were not pulse‑quickeners. Will the team continue the intensity they displayed in Serbia? The last thoughts go to Guéhi.
“In my case, worrying is a natural feeling,” he states about not playing against Albania. “But I was selected in that group. It means that the boss has opted for me for this chance and whether I’m playing or not I’ll always back the team.
“So personally, worrying can be a waste of time. You only get so many days on this planet. I prefer to be positive and focused and assist the people that I can – or improve personally – by striving to be the best that I can be instead of stressing.”
