England manager Thomas Tuchel has encouraged Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham to continue playing with the same “rage and fire” that threatened to drive a wedge between the pair 12 months ago.
It was not long into his England tenure that Tuchel described some of Bellingham’s on-field behavior as “repulsive”—comments for which he swiftly apologized and put down to a poor choice of words in his second language.
Learning to control the “fire” and “edge” from the summer of 2025 was a key challenge from Tuchel to Bellingham. A year later, and it looks like the midfielder may have achieved that goal.
“He likes that,” Tuchel said of a heated clash between Bellingham and Real Madrid teammate Marc Cucurella during Spain’s 3–2 victory over the Three Lions. “He gets better if that happens.
“It’s better if he plays with a bit of rage. It’s what he does. I think sometimes he is looking for these moments to get his fire going.
“He doesn’t know any [club] teammates when he’s in the national team. He wants to win. He is still friends with them but not for the 90 minutes.”
Tuchel: Busy International Break Is Bad for Bellingham
Injuries left Bellingham on the fringes of Tuchel’s England setup in October 2025, but the 23-year-old soon played his way towards the top of the pecking order. He has started nine of the team’s last 10 games, dropping out only for the third-place playoff at the World Cup when a rotated side emerged victorious over France.
Much to Bellingham’s frustrations, more time on the sidelines is coming as Tuchel confessed the high-energy approach he brings to the pitch is simply not feasible across the entirety of an international break that still has three games left to run.
“His game is not economic but let’s see,” Tuchel said when asked if Bellingham will start Tuesday’s trip to Czechia. “I would love to have him four times on the pitch.
“The concern is that he hasn’t done it [played multiple games] this season in this tight period. We will need to check with the physios. We will not put Jude at any risk.
“I would love not to rotate but I am not sure if it’s possible. An ideal scenario would be to go again with six or seven players minimum from the start that we trust, to put the responsibility on them and let them feel the trust.”
