After the World Cup, Thomas Tuchel was asked whether he had seen his vision of England during the tournament - a question that drew a hesitant and unsure answer. Over the summer, the Three Lions found ways to win but often leaned on scrappy moments of brilliance rather than methodical dominance. Tuchel had in mind the type of team, the tactics and the patterns he wanted to see.
He and his assistant coach Anthony Barry have often spoken about borrowing ideas from the Premier League. Building up short, enticing pressure, playing quickly across the middle of the pitch – whether through powerful carrying or long balls – to find runners in attack against fewer defenders were all ideas England tried to execute to varying levels of success in the World Cup. During the recent international break, many of the ideas we saw during the World Cup and prior have persisted.
There have, however, been deliberate changes in tactics and personnel, with the 53-year-old looking to refine his blueprint rather than rewrite it from scratch. England have continued to focus on first playing short from the back, intent on drawing opponents towards them before speeding up play to find their attackers in space. Rather than giving the build-up responsibilities to two central defenders and a holding midfielder as they did during the World Cup, England have committed an extra player to this central build-up unit.
Two central midfielders and two central defenders look to solve problems against pressing attackers with a shape that fluctuates between a 2-2 or a 3-1. Tuchel has praised Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott, who took turns with Myles Lewis-Skelly to pair with Elliott Anderson in the heart of midfield in Declan Rice's absence. Either player taking the role of busy partner for Anderson - boasting technical quality and an ability to take turns playing as a lone holding midfielder - have proved successful for England.
Anderson, who sat at the base of midfield for much of the World Cup has, as a result, been deployed in a more varied role. With Scott or Lewis-Skelly picking up the ball from the centre-backs, Anderson has dropped to form part of the back three alongside Marc Guehi and Ezri Konsa. This has given him time and space on the ball, facing forward, allowing him to use his forward passing to find attackers quickly.
Anderson has also found himself higher up the pitch on occasion, with the protection of his midfield partner behind him, allowing him to showcase his attacking quality. An interesting knock-on effect of this, and a nod to England's overarching evolution, has been the intensity England have shown as they have attacked. "We've always played with high energy and a very aggressive style off the ball, to press high," Tuchel explained.
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