Anthony Gordon has been warned that Marcus Rashford is “pushing and pushing and pushing” for his starting spot with England at World Cup 2026 by boss Thomas Tuchel.
Barcelona’s new signing was handed the start against Croatia in England’s opener but was replaced by Rashford who scored the final goal in an impressive 4-2 win for the Three Lions.
Tuchel says Rashford deserved his goal for the hard work he’s been putting in on the training ground.
“Marcus is just pushing and pushing and pushing in training
at the highest level. I am very, very happy for him that he got his relief [goal against Croatia] and I hope he stays hungry for the next one and the next one because he was absolutely impressive over the last 17 days and he really deserved his goal,” he told reporters after the victory.
Tuchel went on to speak at length about Rashford and how he’s enjoyed working with the forward during his spell in charge of the Three Lions.
“From the first time I selected him, when he was on loan at Aston Villa, I felt that loan was a brave one. Because Aston Villa is clearly a team that is defined, at the moment and in general, by teamwork through stability, hard work, and off the ball. And he did that very well for them. So we selected him, and every time he was in training camp, I saw a very calm, very open-minded Marcus who always tried to give his best,” he explained.
“In the last 17 days, that never changed. So his attitude never changed, whether he was selected to start or came off the bench. He struggled to be decisive for us when he first started, but he always tried, he always tried. He had some bad luck for a long time. Just yesterday we had a conversation where I told him that I’m very, very impressed with his last 16 days, with how he was in camp, how he pushes on the pitch. He’s totally involved in every meeting.
“He’s very, very fast in translating a meeting onto the pitch, what we want tactically, he pushes on a very respectful level with Anthony Gordon in the position.
“So, at the moment, he’s in a very good place. I was so happy that it was him who broke this spell, this long period where he hadn’t been decisive for us from within the game. And hopefully, he can maintain this.”
Gordon and Rashford return to action on Tuesday against Ghana at World Cup 2026.
Who do you think will get the start for England in their next game? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
