England boss reveals ‘clear the air’ talks paved the way for Ivan Toney’s return

By Simon Peach, Press Association Chief Football Writer

Thomas Tuchel revealed he was unhappy with Ivan Toney last summer and held “clear the air” talks with the striker before including him in England’s “special operations team” at the World Cup.

On a day when the absence of Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Trent Alexander-Arnold dominated talk around Tuchel’s tournament selection, the 30-year-old striker was easily the most eye-catching inclusion.

Toney’s two minutes off the bench in the friendly defeat to Senegal last June looked set to be his only appearance under Tuchel, and quite possibly the seventh and final cap of a short-lived England career.

The Al-Ahli striker was overlooked after that and the manager did not even consider him a World Cup option, only to have a change of heart and reconnect with the player a few weeks ago.

“I was not happy with the June camp,” Tuchel said. “He knows that and we had to clear the air after that.

“That was the first step to even start thinking about calling him up again because I was not happy. That was then out of the picture and no more issues.”

Tuchel dismissed talk of a character clash with Toney and said the issue was down to the “level of training and the level of commitment” being below expectations.

The pair spoke before the ex-Brentford star’s inclusion in England’s 55-man long list and despite not going out see him play in Saudi Arabia – something coach Justin Cochrane did do – he was convinced of his merits.

England skipper Harry Kane loves the way the “old school number nine” draws attention away from him, while Tuchel highlighted his finishing, set-piece ability at both ends and “world-class” penalties.

“He ticks suddenly a lot of boxes,” said the manager, who recalled Ollie Watkins after overlooking him in March. “It was necessary that we talked with him again and clarified with him, if he’s happy to come.

“The closest to him was then Dominic Calvert-Lewin because he’s also strong in the air. He could help up with set-pieces. He’s a very good penalty taker.

“Still, after having another conversation with him and having very good feedback from his club coach (Matthias Jaissle) and having good feedback from the Euros in Germany, we decided to reopen the door and invite him in.”

That skillset means Tuchel is taking Toney to North America as somebody to make an impact at the end of games rather than starting them.

Some in sport call such players “finishers” and Tuchel has said he likes the South Africa rugby union team calling reinforcements the “bomb squad”, but now there is talk of England’s special ops united.

“Ivan is, in this case, a part of a specialty team, as part of a special operations team,” Tuchel said.

“He knows that, and that’s his role, and off the pitch, he is a glue.

“He is someone who connects with everyone very, very well, and here we go.”