'Tuchel wants swagger' - what has changed under new England boss

How has Thomas Tuchel changed things with England?

Changing training times, more direct forms of communication and encouraging a swagger - Thomas Tuchel has already started doing things his way.

The Three Lions' new German boss guided England to routine victories over Albania and Latvia in World Cup qualifying as life after Gareth Southgate began successfully.

But what changes from the Southgate era have been implemented, and are now at the heart of shaping what Tuchel hopes is England's journey to World Cup glory?

Here we explore some of these changes inside the England camp.

Training switched to afternoon

Training has been moved to late afternoon in a key technical diversion from Southgate's regime.

Under Southgate, who was England manager for eight years, players would generally train after breakfast but Tuchel is scheduling his sessions for post-lunch, with training held towards late afternoon.

The hope is the change in approach will allow England's players and staff to have a longer period during the day to prepare for their sessions.

Later training is a concept coaches have utilised with increasing regularity in recent years, with a view to improving performance amid a view that holding sessions closer to matchday kick-off times can benefit players during the actual 90 minutes.

There are also said to be benefits to training intensity linked to body temperature, oxygen consumption and sleep recovery with later sessions.

Certain sessions ran into early evening, meaning training under portable floodlights.

Tuchel dedicated to keeping in touch

Tuchel has been maintaining communication with players outside of the international window.

Southgate also used to stay within earshot of his players, but by all accounts Tuchel's dedication to staying connected has gone above and beyond his predecessor.

He also kept in touch with players who ultimately didn't make his squad, to explain the reasons why and what was required moving forward for them to earn a recall.

It's the sort of transparency players have appreciated, although such honesty can often be difficult for certain footballers to hear.

It is understood Tuchel has even offered certain players career advice for the summer transfer window, as to whether a fresh start at a new club would benefit their international hopes.

Late squad and team announcements

Where Southgate, certainly towards the end of his reign, would break the news to new or unexpected call-ups on the day of a squad announcement, Tuchel confirmed with some players that they would be called up the evening before the big reveal.

All players who were on Tuchel's radar received a text in the days leading up to the squad announcement informing them that they could be called up.

Most of the 26 players actually confirmed in Tuchel's squad all received messages at about 07:30 GMT, before the 09:00 announcement on 14 March.

Clubs would usually be told hours in advance if their players had been selected. This time, official communication to domestic teams didn't arrive, in some cases, until 20 minutes before the squad was confirmed.

The reasons for such secrecy remains unclear, though the approach does lend itself to preventing news leaking before the official announcement.

Perhaps the most significant change for the players has been Tuchel's move to naming his starting XI on a matchday.

Southgate usually named his team the night before a fixture - while many players knew the XI based on the shape and personnel deployed in training.

But, for Friday's game against Albania, the players were informed of the team during a noon meeting on the day of the match.

For Monday's qualifier against Latvia, sources have indicated the players didn't know the full starting XI until about 16:00 - less than four hours before the game.

Certain clues from training have also proved red herrings. For example, Morgan Rogers and Anthony Gordon featured heavily in shape training the day before the Albania game, causing many in camp to believe the pair would start the game.

Yet both started on the bench - though Rogers was named in the XI against Latvia.

Not that the uncertainty over team selection appears to have hindered the players.

Six points, five goals and two clean sheets represents an encouraging start for Tuchel.

An opening speech on 'triumph and history'

Jordan Henderson and Dan Burn, two of Tuchel's most unexpected selections, were among the first through the door when the squad convened last Monday afternoon.

The players arrived to a flurry of broadcast activity, which has proved so popular with England's social media output.

At the club's Hilton hotel base at St George's Park, Tuchel has placed a keen emphasis on having various communal areas for his players to relax together.

Playing video games, of which Rice is said to be the squad standard-bearer, remains a popular pastime.

Southgate put a major emphasis on his players building a bond. Tuchel is determined to build on that existing camaraderie.

Indeed, the England head coach stressed the importance of relationships in his first address to the team on Monday night.

In his opening speech, Tuchel reiterated they have just 24 training sessions together before USA 2026 gets under way.

To that end, the former Chelsea boss admitted he would not be making drastic changes to the playing style Southgate had developed.

Based on the opening training sessions, it quickly became apparent that Tuchel would employ a four-man defence - despite conjecture the German would use a three-at-the-back system he relied on successfully at Chelsea.

The overriding message of Tuchel's address, though, was one of triumph and history.

"He said the goal was to put another star on the jersey," divulged Burn last week.

Setting the spine of his team

Some things never change. Moving forward Tuchel views Harry Kane, Declan Rice and John Stones as the core spine of his team.

All three players were made aware of their importance well in advance of the German's first squad selection.

It will take injury or something drastic for the trio not to be named in England's starting XI at next year's World Cup finals, which they are expected to comfortably reach.

You can add Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka to names of almost guaranteed starters.

In camp, Tuchel has held one-to-one meetings with certain players with a view to discovering what makes them tick, but also to understand more who the leaders in his team are.

Tuchel likes big personalities, bordering on arrogance. A swagger. He's spent the past 10 days trying to figure out who those personalities are.

A new approach for the media

The media activities before Friday's win over Albania caused a stir.

Firstly, a video clip of Reece James explaining why Tuchel was the best manager he'd worked with disappeared from ITV's social media just hours after it went live.

It was explained to BBC Sport that the video was removed because of embargo complications.

Then came Tuchel's frank interview with ITV in which he said England lacked a clear identity under Southgate at Euro 2024, and that they were "afraid" to win the tournament.

The remarks were met with a mixed reaction, causing consternation among some within football amid a sense they are ill-informed and disrespectful to Southgate, particularly given England reached the final of the tournament.

Others have applauded Tuchel for his honesty. Similarly, the England players have been split on the merits of Tuchel's remarks.

Time will tell whether Tuchel can fulfil his mission by lifting the World Cup in 16 months' time.

If he does, he will be doing it his way.