THOMAS TUCHEL stuck to his promise of not singing the England national anthem – after vowing to first earn the right to.
The German takes charge of his first game in charge of the Three Lions against Albania at Wembley.
And Tuchel stayed silent during the national anthem before the match.
But it should come as no surprise after the former Chelsea manager – who won the Champions League with the Blues – warned of his intentions.
He said: “I feel that it is not just a given. You cannot just sing it.
That’s why I decided that I will not sing it in my first matches.
“I think, first of all, you have a very powerful, emotional and meaningful national anthem and I could not be more proud to be on the sidelines and be in charge of the English national team.
“It means everything. It means a lot to me, I can assure you, but I can feel because it is that meaningful and it is that emotional and it is so powerful, the national anthem, that I have to earn my right to sing it.
“Maybe I have to dive more into the culture and earn my right from you, from the players, from the supporters, so everyone feels like ‘he should sing it now, he’s one of our own, he’s the English manager, he should sing it’.”
Tuchel returned to the dugout for the first time since leaving his role as Bayern Munich boss in the summer of 2024.
And he admitted before England’s World Cup qualifier: “Big occasion. I’m a bit nervous, but more excited and happy we get the journey going.”
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