No hunger, no identity' Tuchel says Southgate's side played with fear at Euro 2024

Thomas Tuchel has delivered a scathing assessment of England's performance under Gareth Southgate at Euro 2024, saying that they lacked "hunger" and "identity" last summer.

- Jacob Steinberg

In a sign of his desire to make a clean break with his predecessor's era, Tuchel shed any pretence of diplomacy. The German was forthright on England's laboured performances during a tournament in which fans and pundits turned on Southgate, saying the side played with fear and showed no excitement before losing the final to Spain, and his comments were backed up by Harry Kane's admission that the squad was "a little bit light on leadership" in Germany.

Southgate caused surprise inside the camp by taking a host of inexperienced youngsters to the Euros and leaving out senior figures such as Harry Maguire, Jack Grealish and Jordan Henderson, who was handed a shock recall by Tuchel last week. Henderson's return was backed by Kane, who praised the midfielder's ability to lift teammates in difficult moments.

There was a stir when Tuchel's take on England's efforts last year was publicised. Asked by ITV whether he thought the team had a clear way of playing before his appointment, the head coach said: "Not last summer, no."