England: Qualifiers will teach Thomas Tuchel nothing about World Cup chances | OneFootball

Back-to-back Wembley wins kick off new era in positive fashion, but how much can really be learned from such low-key fixtures

When you’ve seen one comfortable England win in a Wembley qualifier you’ve pretty much seen them all, but this really did feel like watching a very particular repeat.

As with Friday night’s 2-0 victory over Albania, there was an opening period against Latvia played almost exclusively in one half of the pitch. There was plenty of effort and eagerness, without a great deal of incision, and an utterly avoidable scare, born of a mix-up between Jordan Pickford and his left-sided centre-back.

Eventually, there was a fine goal from a full-back to make the breakthrough and then, inevitably, a timely clincher from an otherwise quiet Harry Kane, connecting with a Declan Rice cross.

The same paper aeroplanes ruled the skies from so early in the contest that their relevance has clearly been lost. Where the moment of take-off could once be seen as a measure of Wembley’s exhausted patience, now they are simply part of the ritual of going to watch England at this ground.

Where once it took a particularly egregious pass back inside to provide the launch signal, these days the folding has started before the anthems are sung. It is a wonder they aren’t being sold ready-made in the Wembley shop.

Finally, a quarter of an hour from the end, came something to distinguish between the opening two games of the Thomas Tuchel era, a first international goal for Eberechi Eze giving the scoreline a slightly healthier look. Still, given Latvia’s lowly ranking compared to the Albanians, 3-0 was again only just about a par result.

Results are only one part of the equation and, given the ease with which England are likely to qualify for next summer’s World Cup, probably the lesser part at that. This camp, Tuchel has repeatedly stressed, has been about learning, a two-way street between him and his new players, and about building relationships and rhythm.

Debut: Tuchel was thrilled with the impact of Arsenal teenager Myles Lewis-Skelly

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How much he can be taking from matches so far removed in structure from what England will face in North America next year, though, is unclear. Tuchel wants to build a Premier League team, but neither of this break’s contests have looked anything like Premier League games, nor those played between elite international teams.

How, then, to judge whether Myles Lewis-Skelly is a feasible option as an adventurous, inverting left-back against the best sides? He does it for Arsenal, sure, but England do not have covering centre-backs on a par with William Saliba and Gabriel.

How to find out whether Tuchel’s more adventurous midfield balance - with Curtis Jones, Morgan Rogers, or maybe even Cole Palmer as a shuttling No8 - will offer enough stability and control against a side who want their own chunky share of the ball?

How to know whether Tuchel is right in suspecting his team will be best set up with direct, pacy wingers going at their full-backs, when so far there has been so little space to run?

“I don’t know how it has to be out there,” Tuchel conceded, when asked on Monday night about the difficulty of gauging the progress his team is making towards the finished article he wants to take to the World Cup. “I’m just focusing on what we have, to get the team to grow together and build a strong group.

“We are in a good way. The players make the effort and are very proud to come to camp, to play for England. From there, we cross the river when we get to the river.”

The lack of high-class opposition is not a unique challenge for any leading nation during the qualifying cycle, but it has been exacerbated this time around. The expansion of the World Cup has seen European qualifying swell to 12 groups from 10, spreading the best sides ever more thinly.

Among Tuchel’s many challenges between now and next summer will be figuring out just how good his own team is

Having been relegated from the top tier of the Nations League way back in 2022, England are at a further self-inflicted disadvantage; the likes of France, Croatia, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany and Italy have been playing one another in competitive knockout games this month.

More of the same is coming, given England’s next qualifier is against Andorra, the lowest-ranked side in the group. There is then a friendly against Senegal scheduled for Nottingham on June 10, though what kind of team Tuchel is able to field in that game remains to be seen, given the Club World Cup starts in the US four days later.

Chelsea and Manchester City are both due to be involved, as are Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane. September’s international break at least comes with qualifying’s toughest assignment, away to Serbia in Belgrade.

The suspicion as England muddled through the early rounds of last summer’s European Championship was that they would get better, and certainly more watchable, the better the teams they played. That bore out to some degree in Dortmund in the semi-final, where a 2-1 victory over the Dutch produced the best performance of the campaign.

But then it was on to Berlin and a Spain side who were beyond the Goldilocks zone, found to be just too good. Among Tuchel’s many challenges between now and next summer will be figuring out just how good his own team is.