Английн шигшээ багийн дасгалжуулагч Томас Тухелийн сэлгээний тоглогчдод итгэх тактик дэлхийн аварга шалгаруулах тэмцээний турш үр дүнгээ өгч, багийг дараагийн шатанд шалгарууллаа.
Мексикийн эсрэг тоглолтод Жарелл Куанса улаан хуудас авч талбайг орхисны дараа Тухелийн сэлгээнээс оруулсан өөрчлөлтүүд шийдвэрлэх үүрэг гүйцэтгэв. Дэн Бёрн хамгаалалтад нягт тоглож, Жон Стоунз туршлагаараа тоглолтын төгсгөлийг удирдсан нь дасгалжуулагчийн “тусгай ажиллагааны баг” гэх төлөвлөгөө бодитоор биеллээ олсныг харууллаа.
Тэмцээний өмнө Тухель сэлгээний тоглогчдыг зөвхөн талбайд гарах биш, хувцас солих өрөөнд уур амьсгалыг холбогч “цавуу” мэт үүрэг гүйцэтгэхийг онцолсон билээ. Үүнийг батлан, Конго улстай хийсэн тоглолтод Энтони Гордон сэлгээнээс орж ирэн Харри Кэйний хоёр гоолын дамжуулалтыг өгч, Английг хожигдлоос аварсан юм.
Хэдийгээр Жүүд Беллингхэм болон Харри Кэйний үзүүлэлтүүд багийн гол тулгуур болж байгаа ч Тухелийн тактикийн уян хатан байдал болон сэлгээний тоглогчдын бүрэн дүүрэн оролцоо Английг шөвгийн наймд хүргэлээ. Тоглогчид ч гэсэн гарааны бүрэлдэхүүнд багтаагүй үедээ ч сэтгэл зүйн хувьд бэлэн байж, дасгалжуулагчийн зааврыг ягштал биелүүлэхэд анхаарч байна.
Дэлгэрэнгүй эх сурвалжийг харах
Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
On the day Thomas Tuchel named his England World Cup squad, he made a passing comment that has come to fruition.
As England dug in to beat Mexico at the Estadio Azteca on Sunday night, having been a player down for most of the second half following Jarell Quansah’s red card, Tuchel turned to his substitutes’ bench — and got every single change right.
More pertinently, their performances — whether it was Dan Burn throwing himself in front of every Mexico cross and shot, or John Stones’ experience proving vital in the final 25 minutes — added meaning to the words Tuchel uttered on May 22.
The England head coach referenced a “speciality team”, which he then qualified as a “special operations team”.
At the time, Tuchel was responding to a question about Ivan Toney’s call up, but in the same answer he spoke about several other players and positions and why they will all have an important part to play during the tournament.
Against Croatia, DR Congo and Mexico, Tuchel saw the “special operations team” come to life, with his second-half changes proving decisive.
Ivan Toney is part of Tuchel’s ‘special operations team’ (Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)
But Tuchel’s reliance on the 15 players not starting is not limited to what they offer the team off the bench; it also extends to how they behave in training and the dressing room.
He has previously emphasised the need for excellent characters, noting they could be away from home for up to seven weeks if they were to reach the World Cup final.
It was also something he mentioned about Toney, who is yet to feature at the World Cup, on the day he announced his squad.
“Ivan is, in this case, part of a specialty team, as part of a special operations team,” Tuchel said. “He knows that, and that’s his role, and off the pitch, he is a glue. He is someone who connects with everyone very, very well.”
If England are to at least have a strong chance of winning the World Cup, Tuchel knows it will require more than just the starting XI.
Minus the world-class performances from Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham throughout the group stage and early knockout rounds, England would surely have been out of the tournament already.
Yet the fact they are still in it, and will fancy their chances against Norway in Saturday’s quarter-final, is testament to not only Kane and Bellingham, but to Tuchel’s in-game tactical awareness.
After the Mexico game, England posted a video on their social media platforms involving Stones — who has only started once in the tournament — pretending he had injured his shoulder, with Declan Rice also part of the prank.
At one stage, Tuchel looks genuinely concerned, only for Stones to then start pumping his arm in time with the beat of the music, prompting the dressing room to all start dancing — the head coach included.
John Stones 🕺😂
The energy in the changing room last night 🔥 pic.twitter.com/mKqId1pnyJ
— England (@England) July 6, 2026
The short clip, which has been viewed over 38million times, is further evidence of the buy-in Tuchel hoped for from the players whose time on the pitch has been limited.
“I always try to be as positive as possible, and put myself in the best condition,” Stones told reporters after the Mexico result. “I’m here to do what I did tonight.
“As every player is, I’m frustrated when they don’t play and want to play and I feel like the mentality of the boys that don’t is incredible and that’s something that is rare within the tournament, you know.
“You’re away from family, you’re training every day, you’re not playing as much as you’d like to. And we’re all hungry to help, and have all got the same goal in mind to get to that final and see where it takes us, but I feel great, and I’m loving helping and performing the way I did tonight.”
If further evidence was required to highlight the buy-in from England’s substitutes’ bench, then look no further than their round of 32 game against DR Congo,
They were staring possibly their biggest-ever embarrassment at a major tournament in the face, and were heading out of the World Cup to a team more than 40 places below them in the FIFA World Rankings.
That was until Anthony Gordon, who started on the bench, came on to replace Rashford.
And if a physical definition of “special operations team” was required, his performance provided it. Coming on in the 61st minute, the Barcelona player changed the match, twice setting up Kane to ensure England came from behind to win 2-1.
Anthony Gordon made a huge impact coming on as a substitute against DR Congo (Chris Brunskill/Getty Images)
“To be honest, when I’m a substitute, I’m a nervous wreck,” Gordon told reporters after the game. “When I’m on the pitch, I’m calm, but when I’m a sub, I don’t handle it very well. I was desperate to get on, I felt I could change the game. We train hard, and we play hard. I just try to make an impact.”
It is these cameo appearances, along with Bukayo Saka and Rashford coming on to combine together for England’s fourth goal against Croatia, that will be filling Tuchel with much optimism.
“I think as a group we’re really aligned about what’s going on,” Morgan Rogers, another player who has contributed off the bench. “We’re all aware of the game, we’re all watching the game, we’re all invested in it, and we all know the positions that we might be likely to come on in.
“You can have your spin on what you’re going to try and do if you come into the game. But that can always change depending on game scenarios. And he (Tuchel) is giving those clear instructions of what to do, who to help, what might need addressing on the pitch.”
International management is never quite as simple as picking the best 26 players. Yet the former Chelsea manager has assembled a squad that has total buy-in from the starting XI to the bench.
And when Tuchel first referenced “special operations team” nearly seven weeks ago, this is exactly what he would have had in mind.
