Tuchel says Bellingham and James have reached their 'sweet spot' ahead of World Cup

Thomas Tuchel declared Jude Bellingham and Reece James are hitting their stride at the perfect time after both players came through England’s 1-0 warm-up friendly victory over New Zealand in Tampa on Saturday, with the World Cup now approaching.

Bellingham, who missed England’s March camp while completing rehabilitation on a hamstring injury, was handed the captain’s armband by Tuchel for the second half. The England manager was encouraged by what he saw from the 22-year-old Real Madrid midfielder. “You can see Jude has for sure the decisiveness and bite — this is his key characteristic, but you can see that he comes from an injury and is full of energy and happy to be back on the pitch,” Tuchel said.

“He had his break, unfortunately, in a decisive part of the season — the Champions League season and campaign for the championship in Spain — so this was very unfortunate for Real Madrid and for him personally. But you can see now that he is actually in a sweet spot. He comes back, he’s fresh, he wants to play and he’s in top shape.”

The relationship between Bellingham and Tuchel has attracted scrutiny since the German coach admitted last June that his mother found some of the midfielder’s on-field behaviour “repulsive” — a remark Tuchel later apologised for. Bellingham was then overlooked for October’s camp, and questions followed about his reaction to being substituted in November’s World Cup qualifier in Albania.

James, who won the Champions League under Tuchel at Chelsea, also made a second-half appearance in Tampa after his own hamstring troubles. Tuchel was similarly upbeat about the defender’s prospects. “I was just happy to see Reece back and fresh back in training, and with confidence in his body,” he said. “Once he has his 45 minutes, he can produce special moments anytime. He has the body to defend on the highest level and the physicality, so it’s a full package.”

Tuchel added that James offers tactical flexibility, noting his ability to play in a deeper midfield role as well as his primary position at right back. “He gives us flexibility because he plays many times for Chelsea on the six, so he is a candidate to play there as well,” the England boss said, while noting that Elliot Anderson has also been performing well in that role.

England returned to their warm-weather base in West Palm Beach following the Tampa fixture, with the Arsenal contingent of Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Noni Madueke, and Eberechi Eze absent from the squad.