Thomas Tuchel lobbed a grenade into the mix. Jude Bellingham picked it up and threw it back. There was an explosion of honesty in Miami, where everyone was struggling to maintain composure in the stifling humidity, and it needs to be dealt with before England try to reach a men’s World Cup final for the first time on foreign soil.
It is time for cool heads. Tuchel was searing in his immediate analysis of England’s quarter-final win over Norway, telling ITV’s Gabriel Clarke that the performance was sloppy, not fast enough and full of technical mistakes. Praise for the side’s mentality was there but slightly lost in the noise. It was the criticism that Bellingham was asked about and the way he responded, punching back at Tuchel’s comments with some forthrightness of his own, ran the risk of England’s campaign falling down because of a public disagreement between the head coach and the star player.
