‘It is the pinnacle to play for England and that is how it should feel’published at 12:37 GMT
12:37 GMT
England v Serbia (Thu, 19:45 GMT)
England
Thomas Tuchel was asked if he has done anything to guard against players “choosing” club over playing for England: “Not knowingly, but what we are trying is to build a strong bond, to build an energy, a team, a brotherhood that everybody wants to join and to also build a competition that everybody knows that if they pull out in the wrong moment – the door can be closed because someone else will take their place.
“It is not as a threat but the other way around – everybody is keen to come, everybody loves to come to camp, loves to perform for the country because it is an honour. It is the last step of elite football to represent a country like England in a World Cup qualifier or the World Cup itself. It is the pinnacle and that is how it should feel.
“We are absolutely on the way. Everybody wanted to be part of the camp. Everybody was desperate to come. Nobody is giving me signals that it is time to rest because we have already qualified and we will also not accept it. It is an energy that feeds itself and this at the moment is the place where we are.
“It is the absolute key to keep this. Before tactics and before personnel. It is the key that everybody loves to be in camp and enjoys it,”
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