Tuchel vows England squad will rally around Eze after Champions League final penalty miss

Thomas Tuchel has assured Eberechi Eze that the England squad will close ranks around him after his penalty miss condemned Arsenal to defeat in the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain.

Eze, along with Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke and Declan Rice, was granted extra time off following the final before linking up with England at their training base in West Palm Beach, Florida. Tuchel used his pre-camp media briefing to send a direct message to the Crystal Palace forward, who was left inconsolable on the pitch after his spot-kick was saved in the shoot-out.

“Of course it’s painful for Ebs but of course I will take care of it, the group will take care of him and I think the extra week they had will help a lot,” Tuchel said. “I don’t think I will need to lift them. They’ve absolutely had a great season. A final just comes down to one or two shots in a penalty shoot-out which means it cannot be closer. At some point a winner has to be found.”

The England head coach drew on his own experience of shoot-out defeats to frame the loss in perspective. “I have lost some finals in a penalty shoot-out and it’s the closest way to lose,” he said. “A penalty means you did everything right — it couldn’t be closer. But it also means you were absolutely on the same level with maybe the best team in the world at the moment.”

Tuchel was equally keen to remind the Arsenal contingent of what they had already achieved this season. The Gunners ended a 22-year wait for the Premier League title before reaching the Champions League final, and the England manager said that context should temper any lingering disappointment.

“I’m very happy that they got the title in England. I think that took a lot of weight off their shoulders and they were aware they did what they could and they were very close in the final,” he added.

The four players are travelling to West Palm Beach, where England are training at the Palm Beach Gardens Tennis and Pickleball Centre, but are not expected to be available for the first friendly against New Zealand, which takes place 220 miles away in Tampa. They will rejoin the full squad on the team’s return, and Tuchel has arranged for them to watch back recordings of team meetings held during the week they missed.

Away from football, Saka attended the New York premiere of a documentary about his career, with Eze also present at the event. Rice spent his week off with actor James Corden, while Madueke took a separate break. Tuchel said he had already been in contact with several of the players and was confident they would arrive in good shape.

“I saw pictures and I heard messages already that they’re happy to come, the group is waiting,” he said. “We’re in good spirits, so this is normally what helps and I think they’re very well aware of what they achieved this season.”