“It was missing” – Thomas Tuchel criticises Premier League duo after England win | OneFootball

Thomas Tuchel made a winning start to his England reign, leading his team to a 2-0 victory over Albania on Friday night.

However, the manager wasn’t impressed with Premier League stars Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford.

The pair were substituted in the second half after failing to live up to expectations.

Tuchel told ITV: “We hoped for more impact in these positions – we tried Anthony (Gordon) and Jarrod (Bowen).

“I hoped for more impact, more dribbling, less passes, more dribbling and more aggressive runs towards the box. I think that was missing.

“I think all the chances came from little diagonal runs behind the line. Jude [Bellingham] had some good runs in the first half. Myles [Lewis-Skelly] scored from it. Kyle [Walker] had one.

“It was a bit missing [ from the wide players]. They were not as decisive as they can be.”

Rashford has bounced back to form since joining Aston Villa on loan from Manchester United in January.

The 27-year-old is yet to score for Unai Emery’s side, but he has delivered four assists in nine appearances.

His performance for England was unconvincing. He had 55 touches in the game and completed 35 of his 41 passes.

Rashford registered a key pass and successfully completed three of his five dribbles, but he lost possession 13 times.

Foden also endured a frustrating night at Wembley Stadium. He failed to make any meaningful impact, winning 50% of his ground duels and losing the ball nine times.

The 24-year-old had 52 touches but contributed no key passes, crosses or shots.

Tuchel was right to criticise the pair and they must improve their performances to continue playing for England.