Hours after the Manchester City verdict detonated across English football, Thomas Tuchel's England delivered a calm, professional response on the pitch: a 2-0 Nations League win over Czech Republic in Prague, their first clean sheet in seven matches.
Tuchel admitted he never discussed the verdict with his squad — which includes City players Marc Guehi, who played the full 90, and Elliot Anderson, replaced on 70 minutes by debutant Alex Scott — and on the evidence, the message got through. England were controlled, compact, and clinical.
With a trip to Croatia on Saturday and the Czechs visiting Wembley next, England are building momentum at exactly the right time. The noise off the pitch is deafening; on it, Tuchel's men are quietly getting the job done.
