England's 'competition is on' but Thomas Tuchel has too much glitter and not enough glue without John Stones
As he addressed the media ahead of England's first match of 2025-26, coach Thomas Tuchel did his best to ramp things up.
“It's World Cup season,” he announced, no time for experiments, the “competition is on”. He will play what he thinks is his best available team against Andorra at Villa Park on Saturday (5pm), rather than try to be clever about shuffling his pack.
After June’s forgettable experiments saw his side booed off twice, you could hardly blame him.
For John Stones to miss out again is a worry both for the Barnsley-born player and a team which will be far stronger with him in it. As reigning European Under-21 Champions and senior runners-up, England are heavy on glitter at the moment, but worryingly light on glue.
Tuchel is running out of time to make something workable out of it.
Stones’ absence is another reminder that the White Rose back three that served Gareth Southgate so well is quickly breaking up.
Harry Maguire was dropped for Southgate's last hurrah, the 2024 Euros, and after a shocker in England's last game – he was badly at fault for Ismaila Sarr's goal in Senegal’s 3-1 win – Kyle Walker has been sidelined for Saturday's World Cup qualifier, and Tuesday's in Serbia.
Others might be falling by the wayside too. After a tricky start at Real Madrid, right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold will have to sit and watch Tuchel favourite Reece James' latest audition as Walker's heir.
Jack Grealish's flying start to life at Everton has not brought him out of cold storage. Jordan Pickford no longer feels undroppable.
With so much glitter, hard decisions are needed, and Tuchel is not afraid of them. Whether he makes the right ones is another matter.
After a “muscle injury” denied Stones a first appearance under Tuchel, the nagging doubt remains that he might inadvertently get swept up too.
Unlike Walker and Maguire, Tuchel is not rushing to dispose of the 31-year-old with 83 caps and two European Championship finals on his cv. The Manchester City player was taken to June's camp despite not being fit enough to play.
He may have glittering skills for a centre-back, but Stones is seen more as glue.
“I hope he keeps his spirit up because he will stay important for us,” said Tuchel in Friday's media interviews. “I saw in these three days what he means to the group as a personality and as a social glue.”
He can be footballing glue too.
In his absence, Ezri Konsa, Marc Guehi and Dan Burn have emerged as Tuchel's centre-backs, but Stones could also fill the position arguably causing him most problems.
As Declan Rice evolves into a more box-to-box midfielder, with Jordan Henderson on the downward slope and the injured Jude Bellingham needed more for last-minute face-saving goals, Tuchel could really do with a natural holder. No one left in this squad fits that bill.
“It was in our thoughts to maybe use him as a six against Serbia,” said Tuchel, using modern parlance. He sees Stones as “a more physical six, more educated as a central defender to stay deep and create a block of three with the central defenders.”
But international football is about dealing with what you do not have.
With the likes of Morgan Gibbs-White, Morgan Rogers, Eberechi Eze, Marcus Rashford and Noni Madueke – the least heralded and best player of the last camp – floating about, not to mention Bellingham, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer when fit, England need someone to do the donkey work.
Crystal Palace's Adam Wharton has pulled out injured too, leaving Rice, Henderson, and late call-ups Elliot Anderson and Ruben Loftus-Cheek as the options.
England lack a left-back too, which is why Djed Spence – who had a miserable loan at Leeds United only two years ago – and fellow natural right-back Tino Liveramento – a star of the European Under-21 Championship defence – will push Arsenal substitute Myles Lewis-Skelly.
Most of all, they need to show they have learnt the lessons of June, where 82.9 per cent of the ball away to Andorra produced just one Harry Kane goal and a lot of boos, repeated when Senegal came to Nottingham.
Yet to lose or concede, England will qualify and will not win the World Cup by mastering playing against the likes of Andorra. But with the tournament expanded to 48 teams, they might still have to chew some gum along the way.
“It’s a well-drilled team in a 5-4-1,” said Tuchel of Andorra. “It can feel a little bit like chewing gum to break a block down like this but we have to play with more energy, more enthusiasm (than in June) and so far I’m pretty sure that we will.
“We have a condensed period of three camps (until the finals), competition is on and that means we will start with the team that we trust, the best team possible for this game, and then we will manage the second game.”
It would be a lot easier with a bit of glue.