Tuchel takes first steps on England journey targeting World Cup glory

Tuchel is under no illusions about his objective with England after being handed a contract only until the end of next year's World Cup

- 

Over five months on from Thomas Tuchel’s appointment as England's new manager, the German will finally take charge of the team for the first time in Friday’s World Cup qualifier against Albania at Wembley.

Tuchel is under no illusions about his objective with England after being handed a contract only until the end of next year's World Cup.

England have not won a major tournament since the 1966 World Cup, although they have come agonisingly close to ending that drought in recent years.

Under Tuchel’s predecessor Gareth Southgate they twice lost in the European Championship final and reached the latter stages of the last two World Cups.

The English Football Association have invested heavily in Tuchel’s track record as a serial winner at Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, ignoring criticism for not trusting an English coach with a talented generation of players.

A qualifying group also containing Serbia, Latvia and Andorra should pose few problems for the side ranked fourth in the world.