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England manager Thomas Tuchel previews upcoming nations league fixture against Croatia
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00:10Good afternoon everyone and welcome to Rijeka for this media conference to preview tomorrow's
00:15UAF Nations League fixture with Croatia joined by Thomas Tuchel and shortly after Jordan Pickford.
00:20As everyone can keep it to two questions per person initially and if we do have time we'll
00:24come back to you for more and it will start.
00:36There was a huge historic judgement for English football against Manchester City on the eve
00:43of your last game and I completely appreciate it was difficult for you to talk about it at
00:47the time and with the process still ongoing it's difficult for you to talk and I appreciate
00:52that but we have had 114 guilty verdicts against Manchester City for financial mismanagement.
00:58Everyone in football is talking about it and you've got, well you had three City players
01:03in the squad, Nico O'Reilly's gone now so you've got two in Mark Galey and Elliot Anderson.
01:07Have you spoken to those guys?
01:08How are they?
01:10And has it been discussed by everybody in camp?
01:13Yeah I guess so.
01:14I mean we had some times off and some time between the matches and it's a big subject but as
01:20you rightly
01:21say everyone speaks about it, there is no other voice needed to add to all this so I'm glad
01:27to not be that voice, no one needs my half knowledge on the topic.
01:33Of course the players talk about it, of course the City players talk about it and we talked
01:39with them but only briefly.
01:41They are ready to go for tomorrow, that's what they show on the pitch and that's what they
01:46show in camp but of course it's a big topic, it's a big topic in camp.
01:51Thank you, can I ask you about the team news, I mean it's the third game in eight days coming
01:56up, can you give us an idea of who's struggling and whether fatigue might be a factor in some
02:02of the decisions you're going to have to take?
02:04Not yet, I think not yet, we took care about fatigue in the last training sessions, it made
02:09a huge difference for us to have three days in between so we could actually take care of
02:14players with a high output like Elliot Anderson, like Anthony Gordon for example.
02:22Today everyone was in training except for Nico O'Reilly who unfortunately had to leave
02:28camp to get a treatment as soon as possible, with his discomfort it was just too painful,
02:35he could not come back on the pitch so that's the only one who's not available, everyone
02:40else started training, finished training today on a high level, played 10 against 10, so everyone
02:47is pickable and ready to go.
02:51Dona.
02:52Thomas, hello, Dona Diana Prčić, RTL.
02:55Welcome to Croatia.
02:57How do you like it here, we saw some players were swimming and also what's the plan against
03:04Croatia?
03:05We see Baturina is back, we know that he likes to score against the English teams, he scored
03:11in Dallas and also against Arsenal in Comodres.
03:17Well first of all thank you for the welcome, I mean what is not to like, we are here in
03:21beautiful weather, beautiful place of the earth, friendly people, we are a group that likes
03:28to hang out with each other so it feels almost like friends and staff and players.
03:33We have been seven weeks together in the US so we have a strong bond and we have the possibility
03:40to be here in this beautiful place and then we train on high level, we do what we love
03:46most, train football in this environment, what is not to love, it's just beautiful and
03:53it's a good time to recharge and also prepare for the match because we expect a very difficult
03:59match tomorrow against the big football nation and a proud country and a country full of
04:06quality in the Croatian side, very experienced players on the other side and also a good mix
04:15of young players, a new coach, so you know how it is, everyone tries to impress the new
04:20coach, everyone is ready to go and give everything for the new coach, I think this is what waits
04:26for us, it feels a little bit like a cup game, a little bit like a cup semi-final or
04:32something
04:33and we will prepare carefully, we did already today, we had our training session and the
04:38last two meetings are tomorrow, like always, but I am a huge fan of your players, they just
04:46have a lot of quality technically, they are big competitors on the highest level, they were
04:51already here, I was part of one of these matches, there were several matches over the last
04:56years between the two countries and it's a promising one.
05:01But Urino specifically?
05:03Specifically, well we hope to stop his run against English teams but he's not the only threat,
05:12we don't know who plays, we don't know who starts and we're up for it but we'll have an eye
05:17on him.
05:17And also the second question, you're going to play here with no crowd, there will be crowd
05:25but it will be kids, around 5,000 Croatian kids and also 200 English fans, what do you say
05:33about that before the game?
05:36First of all I'm happy for the children that they have the opportunity to come and watch,
05:40that's I think a big inspiration for them and a big occasion to see the players that close,
05:45the stadium is very small and very close up to the players so it's a unique occasion.
05:52I'm glad that our 100 or 200 fans have a chance to be here, that means a lot to us,
05:58that the most loyal fans have a chance to be behind the doors, it's never nice,
06:07it's always a bit of a strange atmosphere then. Everyone, me included, everyone involved in this
06:15match, we love the atmosphere in the stadium, we love a proper football crowd that will be very,
06:22very different and this is a part that we have to take into consideration, we cannot fall asleep
06:28in the beautiful place where we are, we cannot switch off and be in holiday mode and then tomorrow
06:33there are a lot of children so it might feel a little bit like pre-season but it's not pre
06:38-season,
06:39it's a crucial match in Nations League and this is just, it's just another layer to be professional
06:46and to take care about, it is just, it is what it is and we have to deal with it.
06:54Hi Thomas, I know you can't and it's difficult to speak specifically about the Manchester City process,
07:00but broadly and generally, what is your opinion or your view or your stance on selecting players that
07:08aren't playing in the top flight of their respective countries? There's always a possibility, I think I
07:17would always try to pick the best team for the camp, for the occasion, for the tournament and I will
07:23never
07:23rule out that they don't play in the top flight in their country, so we need to look at it
07:30from case by case.
07:32And then, just you're halfway through the four games in 10-day periods, have you changed your opinion
07:42or your views in terms of maybe the impact it's having on the players physically, mentally? I know,
07:48you were pretty against it at the start of the camp. Not yet, I think we're still in a place
07:55where we
07:55can use everyone and everyone can start. I think we reach once, we travel back, have another flight
08:03and have another bus trip until we're then finally in London and then only a two-day turnaround. I think
08:09this becomes then a time where we need to take into consideration if we want to keep our intensity up
08:15in
08:15the game, if we maybe need to do some matches. I told you before the Nations League, before these
08:23two and a half weeks, that I would like to give the responsibility to the core players. I'm still
08:30on that place. Players from behind are still pushing, we have high level in training again today,
08:35which is nice to see. Yeah, but I think for tomorrow we're quite free in our choice and
08:45will maybe then be an issue for the fourth game. Hello, Mr. Tuchel. So you have played against
08:52Croatia in June already in the World Cup. Now they have the new coach who have been playing in England
08:59and who have coached in England, so he knows certain aspects of English football. So what differences are
09:05you expecting and are you planning to adapt to Slavin Bilic's training style or are you staying true to
09:12your own? Well, always both. We will try to stay true to our own. Both teams, I think, will try
09:19to implement
09:19their style. But we see differences, but at the same time we don't know what's coming. So the coach
09:29before was very fluid in switching between a back five and a back four. Both matches now with Slavin Bilic
09:35were in a back four. But you never know, maybe it's a surprise. So it makes it on one hand
09:43a bit more
09:44difficult because we don't have a lot of evidence, we don't have a lot of matches with Slavin Bilic as
09:49a
09:49national coach. On the other hand, it makes it sometimes a little bit easier because you don't
09:54prepare for every scenario that you see, you just have two matches and it gives also a bit of clarity
10:00and shifts the focus a little bit more on us. So hopefully we can implement our style, but in
10:06general you see the quality and you see that if the Croatian team gets momentum that they can play
10:15always on the highest level, they can hurt any team in the world. So it is important to break the
10:22rhythm, to break the momentum, to take charge of the rhythm yourself and that's basically the task
10:30for tomorrow. And also compared to match against Spain, you have switched practically the entire
10:35defensive line against Czech. Yeah, we had three out of four. Yeah, so what are you planning against
10:45Croatia, can you maybe reveal? It seems that as we come back, he did the full training today and
10:53this gives us of course a lot of hope for tomorrow because he's a key player for us.
11:00Nico O'Reilly, our left-back, left the camp and on the right side we have a competition and Mark
11:06should be ready to go and very likely to start. You know how it is, the coach will never tell
11:15you
11:15the line-up and the team did very good. I think that sometimes we forget when we criticise or play
11:24against our own standards and are critical with ourselves, me included. Sometimes you forget that
11:30this team that played for example against Czechia never played together, never, the eleven players.
11:37And for that matter we played a very good game, a very solid game, a very professional game and
11:43there were changes, like you said, to the match against Spain. So the adaptation and the willingness to
11:47adapt is on a high level. Tomorrow we need to find solutions again against a new opponent and we're up
11:53for it.
11:55Hi Thomas, in the World Cup it was Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, now it's Anthony Gordon,
12:00Jarrell Kwanza has come in and done well. Do you think there's something in some of the best
12:04performers that are playing for England don't currently play in the country?
12:12OK, I didn't think about it but yeah, in the moment of course, like you said, Jude was decisive for
12:18us in
12:18the World Cup, Harry as well. I see no reason why they will not be in the future and they
12:25were in the last two matches.
12:28And they will stay to be decisive. It's good that Anthony steps up now, as the third one at the
12:36moment,
12:36to be reliable in decisive actions. We need that. There is obviously a relevance to them playing abroad,
12:48but I don't see that a player who plays in the Premier League cannot step up and be decisive for
12:55us.
12:56Our youngest one is maybe Rio, he seems to be pretty decisive, that he can be a very decisive player,
13:05so he has to prove himself and keep on going. Everyone else, Morgan Rodgers, strong in training,
13:12Morgan Gibbs-White scores a lot in training and Epps is coming back to his true shape and form,
13:20so I think we have options.
13:31Mr. Tuchel, hello. So just one question, maybe two. First one is, last time you were in Croatia,
13:38it wasn't really a nice time for you. Do you still remember that game against Dinamo Zagreb?
13:43What do you think about it?
13:45Yeah, I'm glad we don't play in Zagreb.
13:48Yeah, we were the favourites and we lost on that day. The Champions League match was not a good day,
13:56it was my last match for Chelsea on top of it, so not good memories.
14:00But also, you have good memories, including Croatian players. You coached Mateo Kovačić and
14:06also I think that you managed a lot of games against Luka Modric. They are playing
14:11in the next, in this match alongside. So what do you think about both of them? Luka is a national
14:18hero
14:18and Mateo is his succeeder?
14:23Yeah, Luka is a national hero for sure. He's a legend of the game worldwide. I mean,
14:28he won the Ballon d'Or, well deserved and it was such a good decision to give a player like
14:33Luka Modric
14:34in the height of his career for Real Madrid, the Ballon d'Or. He's just a fantastic football player
14:44and an amazing person and the way he acts on the field. He's just a role model for everyone and
14:51the
14:51true legend of the game. You're right, I managed Stani and of course Kova. Kova, we had a very special
15:01relationship until today. He was my player at Chelsea and won the Champions League together and
15:08he's such a nice and humble and warm character and on the pitch so competitive and full of talent.
15:16So it was pure pleasure to work with him. Every time I see him, I love just to be close
15:23to him and
15:23to hug him. It feels like a very, very close relationship even if we don't text that much and
15:30even if we see each other even less. But it's a special bond and he is a special person and
15:37a special
15:37player for me, always. Thank you very much. Cheers. Thank you.