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It was certainly a strong look, impossible to ignore, something only a top-level footballer could carry off – and even then, the jury was out. When Ezri Konsa strolled in to preview Thursday’s World Cup qualifier against Serbia at Wembley, the England defender did so in what, at first glance, appeared to be a cross between a pair of slippers and oversized Crocs. In garish, fluorescent red.
On closer inspection, it was possible to make out grooves and nodules on them, and then it was time for the science part. Apparently, if you wear these your concentration improves. Well, that is according to the manufacturer. Something to do with the pressure points on the foot, perhaps. Was Konsa convinced? Unclear. How about Thomas Tuchel? Ditto.
“I don’t know the science behind it,” the England head coach said. “They are desperate to tell me, but I haven’t found time to get my head around it. But all the players are wearing them. They told me they can focus better in meetings if they wear these shoes and I hope they believe it. Maybe the most important thing is that they believe it.”
Put it down as one for the marginal gains department. Or simply the power of positive thought, which is something Tuchel, a longtime practitioner of meditation, can get behind. He tries to meditate once a day, even if he concedes that twice would be ideal.
“It helps me with my discipline … it helps me to calm down, to focus and be aware,” he said. “It’s not like you do it and it’s immediately: ‘Oh wow.’ It’s more of an ongoing thing. The more you do it the more effect you feel, but it’s subtle.”
Tuchel was asked what stressed him out. “Oh, journalists, players … sporting directors,” he said. Which got a laugh, given his previous for fallouts with the last of these. He talked, too, about the work within the England camp of Suzanne Scott, the pilates teacher and movement expert. “She does fantastic breathwork sessions,” he said. “She does more stuff than just that, but she does it and the players buy into it. They feel the relief.”
The wider point of all this is a major theme of the camp, which concludes with the final qualifier against Albania in Tirana on Sunday: the notion of England looking within themselves to maintain and drive standards. A major external stimulus has been removed. With qualification to the World Cup sewn up, there will be no jeopardy against Serbia and Albania. Or, indeed, in the March friendlies the Football Association will line up – it is in talks about facing Japan and Uruguay.
England will fine-tune for the finals in North America with warmup games, probably in Florida. But only when they play their opening group match will the pressure be dialled up. The heat of meaningful competition can not be replicated, even if Serbia and Albania continue to battle for qualification berths. Serbia are also about to begin life under a new manager, Veljko Paunovic.
A related detail is the Wembley crowd, to which Tuchel offered pointed feedback after the friendly win over Wales in October. Not enough noise, not enough energy. He knows it will be up to his players to spark the fans, not the other way around.
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“Maybe it’s important to acknowledge it,” he said, when asked about the lack of jeopardy. “Will we get the full thrill of it tomorrow? Maybe not. Will it be the same in the first knockout match at the finals? No. Will it be the same if we needed a win against Serbia to qualify? No, it is impossible.
“But why should we not run? We still do our stuff, we still run at people, we still go after them. The environment and circumstances don’t give the edge, but still we have a lot to prove to ourselves.”
For Tuchel, this is not a game in which to experiment, even if he raised the possibility of trying Phil Foden as a false 9, most likely as a substitute. Rather, it is a moment to double down on the approach that brought progress in the September and October camps, the first of which featured the transformative 5-0 win over Serbia in Belgrade when the heat was very much on.
It will be about sticking to the system; a 6, an 8 and a 10 in midfield with specialist wingers on both sides. It will mean players fitting in, being used in their best positions – nobody shoehorned in on the basis of individual talent. It will be Jude Bellingham or Foden or Morgan Rogers in the No 10 role. Bellingham, Foden and the centre-forward, Harry Kane, will surely not be on the pitch at the same time.
It will be a time to build on the connections, to complete part III of the mission from the autumn – the creation of a clear playing style, an identity. Also to further cement the hierarchies in each position. And the brotherhood within the squad, as Tuchel calls it. Spirit is everything. For the manager, it comes before selections, before tactics.
At this distance, it is possible to feel eight of the lineup for the opening World Cup game are pretty nailed on. Tuchel did not disagree with the number. Those players would be Jordan Pickford, Reece James, John Stones, Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson, Bukayo Saka, Bellingham and Kane. It would probably be Konsa or Marc Guéhi as the second centre-half; Marcus Rashford or Anthony Gordon on the left wing. The most open position, the most problematic, is left-back, where Djed Spence and Nico O’Reilly are duelling.
Tuchel’s idea is to focus on plan A, the clarity of roles; not to obsess about contingencies. The idea is that the back-ups will step up as required. It is the structure that is king – along with the motivation from within.
