Thomas Tuchel tells England star ‘change into extra of a frontrunner’ in World Cup message
One of the Premier League’s top defenders wants to be the bedrock of Thomas Tuchel’s England side and help the Three Lions finally lift the World Cup again
Ezri Konsa is on a mission to state the case for his defence when it comes to being the bedrock of Thomas Tuchel’s England side.
Konsa was a peripheral figure during England’s march to the Euros final last summer under former boss Gareth Southgate. The Aston Villa centre back had to sit and watch Marc Guehi and John Stones get picked ahead of him.
But Konsa was handed a huge vote of confidence from Tuchel when the German selected him ahead of Guehi for his first game in charge, against Albania on Friday night.
Konsa made the most of his chance with a faultless performance. And with the 2026 World Cup on the horizon, Konsa is not planning to give up his shirt without a fight.
The 27-year-old will be looking to win his 11th cap when England host Latvia in their second World Cup qualifier at Wembley tonight (Monday, March 24).
And Konsa said: “Yeah, it was nice (to start the game). I want to improve how good I am at this level. I’m just grateful that the boss put me into the team, and hopefully I’ve shown him what I can do.
“It’s definitely a vote of confidence. We’ve got another game on Monday and I’m sure other players will get the opportunity to play as well.”
Konsa wants to go on and become a leader in the side and he said: “That’s something that he [Tuchel] told us, me, when he came in.
“How much he wanted us to be together, even more so than than before. He wanted leaders and I think for me, especially as on a personal level, I think that’s something that I want to try and improve on in my game.
“Become more of a leader, and hopefully under the boss I can do more of that.”
England will be one of the favourites to win the World Cup in 15 months time. And Konsa admits the players have to handle the constant weight of expectation on their shoulders – not least because the new manager is a proven winner.
He said: “As players you have got to deal with pressure. That’s part of the game, especially the level we are playing at. With the team we have got, especially when we are expecting to win something.
“The boss has come in to win something, he’s got the winning mentality. You can see with the CV how many trophies he has got in his career – and he wants to win here.”
The Latvians are expected to provide another test of England’s patience, like Albania did in the opener. And Konsa admits one of the biggest battles is not being bored, if he has no defending to do.
He added: ” I think it’s sometimes we find difficult, when we get a team which plays a really low block with men behind the ball.
“I suppose we do get bored sometimes, and we want to move around and it doesn’t help our structure. But it’s something that we’re going to try and improve on under the boss.”
