Tuchel: 'We have to be better'

Thomas Tuchel oversaw his first victory as England head coach on Friday evening, after the Three Lions kicked-off their new World Cup qualifying campaign with a 2-0 victory over Albania.

A first-half goal from debutant Myles Lewis-Skelly – called up by Tuchel for the first time for this camp – got things underway at Wembley before skipper Harry Kane added a second goal after the break.

And while Tuchel was pleased to start his spell in charge with a victory, he was also keen to point out the areas for improvement.

“We can do better and we have to do better,” he said.

“We started quite well, with a lot of passes and high energy but the opponent was hard to wear down because they defended in a deep block and all the matches we saw in the EUROs, they managed to not concede chances, not concede goals.

“In the second half, I felt we were too slow and there weren't enough runs off the ball to get more often behind the line.”

One aspect of the game which he was pleased with was the impact of Lewis-Skelly, who opened his international account with a smart finish after a defence-splitting pass from Jude Bellingham.

“Amazing player, amazing personality,” revealed Tuchel on the Arsenal youngster, 18, who became the youngest player to score on his debut for England.

“He came into camp and showed straightaway that it's normal to fall in love with him. He’s a top player, an amazing character and well deserved.

“He's [Bellingham] a key player, a fantastic pass to assist the first goal. We expect certain things from Jude, he's ready to take this responsibility and we have to create the environment and structure where we can see more of it.”

Another area where Tuchel is hoping to improve is in his team’s effectiveness in the wide attacking areas, especially in games where the opposition is proving tough to break down with Marcus Rashford, Phil Foden, Anthony Gordon and Jarrod Bowen all looking to make an impact.

“We hope for more impact from these positions,” he added.

“I hope to see more dribbles, less passing and more aggressive runs towards the box. This was missing and all the chances came from little diagonal runs behind the lines.

“Jude had some good runs in the first-half, Myles scored from it and Kyle Walker had one where we had a big chance to score a second one. This was missing and they weren't as decisive as they could be.”

The Three Lions will return to Wembley on Monday evening, when Latvia are the visitors in the next game of their qualifying group.