🔗 Share this article

Should Bellingham hopes to fight his way into the English strongest starting eleven, he would be wise to do away with the dramatics. His reaction when he saw that he was about to come up following a night of uneven play in the match against Albania was not good enough.

"I prefer not to make more out of it but I stick to my words 'attitude matters' and consideration for the teammates who come in," commented the coach. "Choices are taken and you must accept them when you're on the field."

The midfielder must understand. It was unnecessary for a strop. Kane had only moments earlier made it the national team leading by two in a meaningless fixture, the game had six minutes to go and he, who had not played particularly well, received a caution for bringing down Armando Broja. This could scarcely be called a controversial substitution. In fact it might have been reckless for Tuchel to keep Bellingham on the pitch considering there was a chance he would rule himself out of the initial fixture of the competition by receiving a second caution.

Drawing Attention to Himself

However, the player turned the spotlight on himself. There was no disguising the 22-year-old’s annoyance as he realized that he would be substituted for Morgan Rogers. He threw his arms up and while he exchanged a handshake while heading to the sideline it was obvious that Tuchel was displeased.

Here lies the test facing Bellingham. He praised Marcus Rashford for providing the assist for Kane to score the team's second, but his other actions was self-defeating. It is not as if complaining was going to alter the decision. Tuchel has repeatedly emphasized following squad protocols and the necessity of showing proper conduct.

Under Scrutiny

The midfielder, left out of the team last month, is being watched carefully since coming back to the fold recently. Practically his place has been in question and his actions haven't benefited him through his behavior to his substitution as England rounded off a flawless qualification run by seeing off a feisty challenge from Albania.

Tactics and Formation

It means opinions are divided on if England perform optimally when Bellingham plays. The performance was inconclusive. Tuchel tried new things from Tuchel at the start. He has given England organization and direction lately, employing a defensive midfielder, a box-to-box player, an attacking midfielder and dedicated wide players, but the approach changed against Albania. Jarell Quansah was made his England debut, Wharton made his first start for England and the role of the defender as a part-time midfielder gave a faint echo to City's historic treble-winning side.

Mixed Performance

His performance was inconsistent. He made a chance for his teammate during the second half but frequently appeared trying too hard. There were a lot of poorly executed passes. An unnecessary confrontation with a rival player at the beginning. The team looked disjointed during most of the second period. A scoring chance for the opponents resulted from Bellingham squandered possession. The yellow card was shown after an opponent took the ball by Broja and committed a foul on the attacker.

Depth Makes the Difference

Finally England’s depth made the difference. Tuchel introduced Phil Foden, who appeared better suited to the role that Bellingham had played earlier in the match, and Saka. Later Saka provided a corner kick for Harry Kane to score the first goal. It highlighted that dead-ball situations are going to be vital in the upcoming tournament.

Relationship Not Broken

Nevertheless, Bellingham was the story. The excellence of Rashford’s assist for Kane’s header was somewhat overlooked due to the fuss of the player change. When the match concluded, all eyes were on him. Tuchel came over to his side and guided Bellingham to acknowledge the away supporters. Their relationship is not broken. Tuchel is not willing to discard him at this stage. Yet whether Tuchel is inclined to offer him centre stage is not guaranteed.