Johnson: Tuchel brings winning mentality to England

Thomas Tuchel's winning mentality and composure under pressure is exactly what England need to win trophies, so says Glen Johnson. 

Tuchel has made an ideal start to life in the England dugout, overseeing World Cup qualifying victories over Albania and Latvia, while also keeping two clean sheets in 2-0 and 3-0 wins respectively. 

The Three Lions return to action on June 7, against Andorra, before taking on Senegal in a friendly three days later. 

Tuchel is the third foreign head coach to manage England, after Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello. 

But the reasoning behind the decision was his success at club level, delivering trophies during his time with Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich.

Tuchel was given an 18-month contract by the Football Association to lead England at the 2026 World Cup, which takes place across the United States, Mexico and Canada. 

And Johnson, who played 54 times for the Three Lions, believes the German's experience of securing major trophies will be key to future success for England. 

"From Chelsea, yes, but not since the England camp," Johnson exclusively told Stats Perform when asked if he had spoken with former team-mates about Tuchel's appointment.

"Obviously, they've only just finished, haven't they? But yeah, he's a likeable guy. 

"He knows how to deal with big players. He's been in finals, won big trophies, and I think that's what England need.

"We've got some great players, and you need a manager that has been through that sort of deep end of the stages of tournaments when they can remain calm."

Eyebrows were raised when Tuchel named his first 26-man squad for their recent fixtures. 

There were returns for Jordan Henderson and Marcus Rashford, while Arsenal teenager Myles Lewis-Skelly and Newcastle United's Dan Burn were picked for the first time. 

But those decisions proved worthwhile, with Lewis-Skelly netting the first goal of the Tuchel era against Albania, becoming the third-youngest scorer for the Three Lions, after only Wayne Rooney (17 years 317 days in September 2003) and Michael Owen (18 years 164 days in May 1998).

"It's a nice easy way out of the door. But I think some of the lads looked great. And like I say, they had plenty in the tank," Johnson said. 

"Against a better opponent, we would have seen an awful lot more. So, like I say, it's positive. It's a good start.

"There's a lot of lads that maybe got their debut nerves out of the way against simple opponents. So hopefully they can kick on now and keep going."

There was also an impressive return to the England fold for Chelsea captain Reece James, who marked his first start for his country since September 2022 with a stunning free-kick against Latvia. 

James has been blighted by injuries in recent years, but with Trent Alexander-Arnold missing due to an ankle issue, the 25-year-old grasped the opportunity with both hands. 

The right-back position was often spoken about during Gareth Southgate's eight-year tenure, with Kyle Walker often preferred. 

Johnson, however, believes that if James can stay fit, he should be in Tuchel's starting line-up ahead of Alexander-Arnold and Walker. 

"Yeah, right up there. I'm a big fan, obviously he has his injury problems, but most people do, so as long as he can stay fit, then for me he's the all-rounder, he's probably the best," Johnson concluded.

"All three of them are great, don't get me wrong, but they all offer different things.

"I think with Reece he's probably the all-round footballer that in this game now, he's the more all-rounder out of the three to be honest."