Thomas Tuchel says the World Cup has brought him the best coaching days of his career so far, and England's camp has picked up a lighter edge to match it. The squad have been singing Wonderwall, the Football Association installed a turntable at the team hotel and brought vinyl records to camp, and England face Ghana in Boston in their second Group match.

Tuchel's mood inside camp

Tuchel was blunt about the lift he gets from the tournament. “I don't do anything extra, it just gives me a lot of energy to be at a World Cup, to have this tournament and be in competitive mode,” he said to mirror.co.uk.

He was even more open when asked about the stretch he is in now. “I've had one of the best days and weeks of my coaching career until now. I am surrounded by world class players and fantastic personalities. It energises me and that's how it needs to be done.”

That mood fits an England camp that has started well. They are top of Group L after one match, on 3 points, with 4 goals scored and 2 conceded after the win over Croatia. Tuchel also said of Wonderwall, “Hopefully it becomes an anthem because that is exactly what a tournament like this is for, for the connection between fans and the team.”

Rice's workload and fitness subplot

The lighter tone does not remove the other story in camp. Declan Rice has been managing nerve pain in his hamstring since after Christmas, and he has already played 55 matches for Arsenal this season.

Rice said on goal.com, “I was feeling a little bit of neural pain in my hamstring, which I was managing from after Christmas with Arsenal for a very long time. Obviously, not a lot of people would have known that, it was all behind-the-scenes stuff, but it was a smart decision.”

He also described the schedule in plain terms: “It's an obscene amount of games, the schedule was crazy, but what can we do about it? You can't sit and complain.” Tuchel's handling of Rice has been cautious too, with the midfielder taken off in the 72nd minute against Croatia after assisting Harry Kane.

Rice says he is fit now, and he sounded calm enough about the issue. But the workload is real, and England will keep tracking him as the tournament moves on against Ghana.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →