Thomas Tuchel has told his England players he would rather lose to Albania than see any of them sent off in Sunday's World Cup qualifier, with a suspension potentially ruling them out of next summer's tournament. The head coach has taken note of Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo facing a possible two-game ban after his red card against the Republic of Ireland and will urge discipline in Tirana.
"No red cards please," said Tuchel. "We are through and we are in a position with last man – then the player holds the shirt, he gets the red card. If there's a doubt then it would be smarter not to do it." The manager recalled Wayne Rooney's needless dismissal at the end of Euro 2012 qualifying, which ruled him out of the start of the tournament.
Tuchel also addressed Djed Spence's apparent snub of Brentford boss Thomas Frank after Tottenham's defeat earlier this month. "I didn't like it," said Tuchel, who spoke to the full-back about the incident. "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."
England, who have already won Group K without conceding a goal, are without Ezri Konsa and Marc Guéhi, so Dan Burn could partner John Stones in central defence. Tuchel is considering changes in midfield, with Adam Wharton or Jordan Henderson in contention alongside Declan Rice. The big decision is whether Jude Bellingham starts ahead of Morgan Rogers in the No 10 role.
Tuchel insisted club considerations would not affect his team selection, though he substituted Declan Rice and Morgan Rogers after 65 minutes against Serbia to manage their minutes. "Our first thought is about the player," he said. "We cannot now allow ourselves to run less, and we have only this camp to keep things going for ourselves."
