England manager Thomas Tuchel has publicly reprimanded international defender Djed Spence concerning an incident of poor conduct following a recent Premier League match.
The Frank Snub That Sparked Tuchel's Ire
The issue arose last month after Tottenham Hotspur's 1-0 defeat to Chelsea at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Djed Spence, who has three senior England caps, was seen ignoring Brentford manager Thomas Frank after the final whistle. Tuchel, who was present at the match, confirmed he was unimpressed by the young defender's behaviour.
'Yeah, I didn’t like it,' Tuchel stated plainly. He emphasised that for his squad, the responsibility of being a national team player extends beyond the confines of a training camp. 'The players know they are not only national players when they are the 10 days in camp, they are always national players and the standard of behaviour is always important.'
The England boss revealed he has since spoken directly with Spence about the incident. Interestingly, Spence was an unused substitute during England’s 2-0 win over Serbia at Wembley on Thursday, despite having started the previous international fixture against Latvia in October.
World Cup Warning: No Red Cards, Please
In other news from the England camp, Tuchel has issued a stark warning to his players ahead of their final qualifying match in Albania on Sunday. With qualification for the next World Cup already secured, the manager has instructed his team to avoid red cards at all costs.
His caution comes in the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo's recent dismissal for Portugal. Ronaldo is now facing the possibility of missing the first two group stage games at the World Cup if his ban is extended for the elbow on defender Dara O’Shea. Tuchel is keen to avoid a similar scenario, referencing Wayne Rooney's suspension for England’s opening two matches at Euro 2012 after a red card in a qualifier.
'It is important, I’m aware of it and we will talk about it - no red cards please!' Tuchel declared. 'Because we are through, and we are in a position with the last man and the player holds the shirt he gets the red card, so if there’s a doubt, then it would be smarter not to do it.'
He advised his players that it would be better to let an Albanian attacker run through on goal rather than commit a professional foul and risk a sending-off. However, he also cautioned against making the subject too dominant, saying, 'I don’t want to make it too big a subject, because then you have a cloud above you. But if you have the choice, don’t do it.'
Team News from the Camp
On the squad front, Jude Bellingham is in line to start the match in Tirana. Meanwhile, defender Ezri Konsa has been forced to return to Aston Villa after sustaining a calf issue.
