Thomas Tuchel insists Jude Bellingham is important to England's hopes of success, rejecting suggestions the side are better off without Real Madrid superstar.
Tuchel’s tenure as England manager began in March as the Three Lions beat Albania and Latvia in a routine World Cup qualification double-header.
Those wins were followed up with a 1-0 victory over Andorra last weekend before a 3-1 friendly loss to Senegal at the City Ground. Though, it is clear that England have room for improvement ahead of next summer's World Cup in North America.
Bellingham featured in both games, making him an ever-present under Tuchel so far and the German tactician has highlighted the midfielder's certain quality.
He said: “I think he has a certain something. I think he brings an edge, which we welcome and which is needed if we want to achieve big things."
Tuchel does agree that Bellingham needs to keep this particular edge in tact.
He added: “Yeah. It needs to be channelled. The edge needs to be channelled toward the opponent, towards our goal and not to intimidate team-mates, or to be over aggressive to team-mates or referees.
“But [channel it] towards opponents, yes, and always towards the solution, meaning towards winning. We are on that, yes. He has the fire.
“I don’t want to dim this down. He should play with this kind of fire, that’s his strength. But the fire comes also with some attributes that can intimidate you, maybe even as a team-mate.
“You see sometimes the explosion towards referees and the anger in his game, so if he can channel this in the right way, and we can help him in this, then for sure he has the something that we need.
“And he has a certain edge that is hard to find.”
The edge needs to be channelled toward the opponent, towards our goal and not to intimidate team-mates, or to be over aggressive to team-mates or referees
Having started the first three games of Tuchel’s tenure, Bellingham was handed a substitute role against Senegal.
The midfielder climbed off the bench in the second half and thought he had equalised in the last 10 minutes, only for VAR to disallow the goal for handball by Levi Colwill.
Tuchel was quizzed on a growing belief among some England fans that the Three Lions would be better off without Bellingham and shut down that suggestion.
“I struggle to see that. I think it has to be the other way around, how we can have the best version of him and the best acceptance that people understand what he is bringing to us, and that he is bringing a certain edge,” Tuchel responded.
“But I see that it can create mixed emotions. 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.
“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.
“I see that, but in general we are very happy to have him. He is a special boy.”
The England head coach was asked whether he felt Bellingham was hard to manage.
“No, not at all,” Tuchel said. “He is a nice kid and very open, very intelligent - and very easy, so far.”
