England boss Thomas Tuchel has said he will continue to pick Manchester City players even if the club is relegated to the Championship, while revealing the fallout from the 115-charge verdict has been a major topic of conversation in the England camp this week.
Tuchel acknowledged the case has been a distraction for his squad, with City players Marc Guehi and Elliot Anderson receiving a flood of messages about the situation. Both players could feature in England's UEFA Nations League clash with Croatia on Saturday.
Tuchel: City players are 'young and ambitious'
Asked whether he would select City players if the club were relegated, Tuchel said: “There’s always a possibility. I think I will always try to pick the best team for the camp, for the occasion, for the tournament, and I will never rule out that they don’t play in the top flight in their country. So you need to look at this case-by-case.”
The German admitted the case has been a hot topic among his players, but insisted it has not affected training. “I mean, we had some time off and some time between the matches, and it's a big subject,” Tuchel said. “If I say now it's not, then I can just speak for myself, which would be totally narrow-minded. I think it is a distraction. It is. Let's say it is a subject.”
Players concerned about their futures
Tuchel said the City players are naturally worried about what comes next. “We speak about it at dinner and at a table of eight or 12 people. Of course, we speak about it at breakfast. And I know that the Man City players get a lot, a lot of messages and phone calls and feedback about it,” he added.
“Are they worried or like are they concerned? I think that would be a very human reaction if you don't know what's going on for the club that you signed. They're still young. They're ambitious. They're told they are totally innocent and don't know what's going on. So yeah, I think it is a subject.”
Guehi joined City in January, Anderson arrived for £116m in the summer, and Nico O’Reilly has returned to his club for treatment on an injury. None of them have relegation clauses in their City contracts.
