Thomas Tuchel reckons Jude Bellingham's got the fire in his belly that England need, even if his own dear old mum ain't always a fan of the Real Madrid star's temper tantrums.
Tuchel's take on Bellingham's fire
In a recent chinwag with Adrian Durham and Stuart Pearce on the radio, the Three Lions gaffer chatted about his start in the hot seat, with the 2026 World Cup now just a year away. Despite a shock 3-1 defeat to Senegal at Nottingham Forest's City Ground on Tuesday, Tuchel's still got high hopes for his boys, especially young Bellingham.
The Real Madrid midfielder had a bit of a mare against Senegal, with a late equaliser disallowed by VAR for a dodgy handball. Bellingham was fuming, booting the ball into the air when the ref blew the final whistle, then kicking a water cooler before racing after the linesman. Captain Harry Kane had to drag him back onto the pitch to clap the fans, while Tuchel tried to calm him down.
This wasn't the first time Bellingham's lost his rag - he once kicked a VAR monitor after Real Madrid's last-gasp defeat to Valencia. But Tuchel reckons his fire is just what England need. "He has the fire and I don't want to dim this down. He should play with this kind of fire," said the gaffer. "That's his strength. But the fire comes also with some attributes that can intimidate you, maybe even as a teammate."
Channelling Bellingham's aggression
Tuchel and his coaching staff are working on channelling Bellingham's inner fire in a positive way. "The edge needs to be channelled towards the opponent, towards our goal and not to intimidate teammates or to be over-aggressive towards teammates or referees, but towards opponents," he said. "And always towards the solution, meaning towards winning."
Despite some fans questioning Bellingham's impact and temper, Tuchel's having none of it. "I struggle to see that," he said. "I think it has to be the other way around, how we can have the best version of him and the best acceptance, and that people understand what he's bringing to us and that he's bringing a certain edge."
But even Tuchel's own mum isn't always a fan of Bellingham's antics. "I see this with my parents, with my mum, that she sometimes cannot see the nice and well-educated and well-behaved guy that I see," he said. "And the smile – if he smiles, he wins everyone. But sometimes you see the rage, you see the hunger and the rage and the fire and it comes out in a way that can be a bit repulsive for example, for my mother, when she sits in front of the TV."
Still, Tuchel's a big believer in Bellingham's talent and attitude. "In general, we are very happy to have him. He's a special boy," he said. Let's just hope he can keep that fire burning in the right direction, eh?
