England manager says respect for each other vital to what team are trying to achieve
England’s perfect finish to World Cup qualifying came with a minor controversy on Sunday after Jude Bellingham reacted angrily to being substituted late in the 2-0 win in Albania.
Head coach Thomas Tuchel played down the incident afterwards but warned that standards around discipline are non-negotiable.
Bellingham was making his first England start since June after being left out of recent squads by Tuchel, but he struggled in the game and the manager substituted him in the 84th minute to introduce Morgan Rogers.
The Real Madrid midfielder gestured in frustration before leaving the pitch upset.
“Yeah he didn’t like it, no one likes it,” Tuchel said. “But that’s how it is. That was the decision.
“Jude was also on a yellow card and I made the decision before the second goal and the decision stands.”
The England manager has emphasised that standards on and off the pitch are central to what he is trying to achieve with the squad, but he told reporters he was wary of reading too much into the midfielder’s reaction.
“I saw he was not happy, I don’t want to make it bigger at the moment than it is,” said Tuchel. “My words stand: we are about standards, level and commitment to each other and respect to each other. We will not change our decision just because someone waves their arms.
“Morgan Rogers was for sure not happy when he couldn’t start today because he deserves to play for us and he wants to play all the time. We gave him a bit of a rest because he came with a lot of minutes for his club and played against Serbia.”
