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Phil Foden’s brilliant double in Manchester City's dominant 4-1 victory over Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday was not just a statement for his club but may well have been a timely reminder to England manager Thomas Tuchel.City boss Pep Guardiola praised the 25-year-old Foden, who struggled through a difficult campaign last season but now looks revitalised, and backed the midfielder, who has not played for England since March, for a return to Tuchel's squad.Tuchel will name his squad next week for World Cup qualifying games against Serbia and Albania. Asked whether Foden’s performance could boost his chances of a return to the England squad, Guardiola was diplomatic, but pointed."Thomas is so smart and wise, and knows exactly what national team needs," he said. "Thomas knows perfectly well how good Phil is. (But) the national team is different, it is a short time, create a team when you are not a team, because you are not there all together every day. But come on, Phil -- there's no person in this country and all around the world who doesn't know his quality and ability. But England is so lucky to have many good players. That's why Phil has to push himself to be better and better and better, because when he is called, he can say 'Okay, I'm going to show how good I am'."Asked if Foden was on his way back to top form, Guardiola said: "He is already there. He does not need to get closer," he added. "It is true we have missed goals and he got two incredible goals. How many times have we seen that from Phil? The generosity with the effort but also with the quality in the final third. We missed it a lot. When Phil is in the level, when playing between the lines, in the pockets, and it doesn't matter, his first touch, his turn, and after his generosity, running and fighting, as much as Phil is happy and (feeling) love and joy, the rest, you don't have to say much, because he's a special player," Guardiola said. "But we need his goals definitely and today, hopefully, the first step."Foden said he was loving playing again. "I just need to play with a smile on my face, which I'm doing," he said. "Last year was tough, not just for myself but for everyone. There is a new togetherness this season and you can tell. You learn a lot from it when you go through a tough patch. We have great captains in our team and we speak about how we can get back on track. And we've added great players to the squad as well and that's brought real hunger and togetherness. It was just about trying to be the team we used to be and this season we are seeing glimpses of that."Guardiola said Foden's standout performance on Wednesday was perfect timing with reigning Premier League champions Liverpool visiting on Sunday. "Before the big, big match on Sunday, it is important to have him back."

Manager Thomas Tuchel laughed off taunts from England fans as “British humour” after his team smashed Latvia 5-0 to become the first European side to book a place at next year’s World Cup.Harry Kane’s first-half double in Riga on Tuesday, along with goals from Anthony Gordon, Eberechi Eze and a Maksims Tonisevs own goal, guaranteed England a place at the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States.Tuchel was on the receiving end of light-hearted chants from the travelling fans who were responding to the German’s criticism of the atmosphere during Thursday’s 3-0 friendly win over Wales at Wembley.He was subjected to taunts of “We sing when we want” and “Are we loud enough for you?”.“I got a bit of stick today, in the first half, pretty much in every song,” said Tuchel.“So fair enough. Well done. I take it and good humour, good sense of humour.“They had a reason today from my last comments and I guess that’s fair enough. I got a bit of stick and I found it quite creative.“It made me smile and this is how it has to be. It’s British humour and I surely can take it. No harm done.”Tuchel, whose contract runs until the end of the World Cup, said vocal support from fans was vital as the team chases a first major trophy since 1966.“It’s so important. They are here and I said the support in Serbia was brilliant, and we are very sure the support in America (at the World Cup) will be absolutely brilliant,” he said. “We need it. It makes such a difference if you go out as a player or as a coach and you see the fans behind the team and singing.“We want to make them proud, we want to make them happy. They should be happy to watch us and they should be able to identify with how we play.“We are on our way to build something and top performance from them.”England’s victory in Riga made it six wins from six in Group K and they now have an unassailable seven-point lead over second-placed Albania, with two games remaining.The draw for the group stage of the World Cup will be held in Washington on December 5.

Thomas Tuchel blasted England’s “silent” fans for failing to back his team loudly enough during their 3-0 friendly win over Wales at Wembley on Thursday.Tuchel’s side delivered an eye-catching first half display as Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins and Bukayo Saka all netted inside the first 20 minutes. England’s swaggering performance, which followed a 5-0 demolition of Serbia in a crucial World Cup qualifier in September, was a promising sign as they gear up for next year’s World Cup.But Tuchel took exception to what he felt was a tepid response from England supporters in the sell-out crowd. “We did very, very well. We had an excellent first half, we were 3-0 up very quickly but could have been four or five. Then we couldn’t score the fourth one or the fifth one and the stadium was silent,” Tuchel said.“Silent! We never got any energy back from the fans and I think the players delivered a lot to get more from the fans. It was difficult to keep everything going in the second half, but we did excellent and deserved to win. A step in the right direction.”Tuchel’s frustration was exacerbated by hearing Wales backed by 7,000 raucous fans, who never stopped cheering their team even though they were completely out-classed.The German may also have been letting off steam after he was jeered by England fans at the City Ground in Nottingham following a shock friendly loss against Senegal in June.Asked if he expected more from supporters at Wembley when England were playing so well, Tuchel responded: “Yeah, what more can you give in 20 minutes? Three goals, the way we attacked Wales and didn’t let them escape. “Even in their own half, ball win after ball win after ball win. If you only hear Wales fans for half an hour, it’s a bit sad because I think the team deserved big support today.”England fans engaged in their Wembley tradition of throwing paper aeroplanes when they felt the match wasn’t entertaining enough, with many leaving well before the final whistle.Tuchel stood by his controversial comments when he faced the media at his post-match press conference.“Good moment to explain myself. First of all, I said the support in Serbia was absolutely fantastic when we played last time. I said it and I meant it,” he said. “I love English football and I love English football fans and the support they give. But I think today the atmosphere did not match the performance on the field.”Tuchel is certain England will be backed by much louder support from travelling fans in Latvia when they resume World Cup qualification on Tuesday.England are on the verge of qualifying for the World Cup and could be certain to progress to the tournament if they win in Latvia, depending on other results in Group K. Former Bayern Munich and Chelsea boss Tuchel has now won six of his seven games since replacing Gareth Southgate.

England manager Thomas Tuchel is adamant there is "no curse" upon his side as he looks to end their near 60-year wait for a major international trophy. England's only previous major title came at the 1966 World Cup on home soil, defeating West Germany in the final.England came close several times to ending the drought under Tuchel's predecessor Gareth Southgate, losing successive European Championship finals, as well as reaching the 2018 World Cup semi-finals and the last eight in 2022. England's women have enjoyed success under Sarina Wiegman, winning back-to-back Euros titles in 2022 and 2025, while the men's Under-21 side are also double European champions after backing up their 2023 title with victory in Slovakia in June."Not at all," Tuchel said when asked if he felt extra pressure due to the women's and youth teams' successes. "If it is something, then it is a good omen and I was so happy for Sarina and (Under-21 coach) Lee (Carsley) because they made it and they made an extraordinary effort and a huge success with back-to-back victories... It is possible (to win a trophy with England), there is no curse on English teams and it is a good omen and we will do our very best to follow their example."England face Andorra today in qualifying for next year's World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, before taking on Serbia in Belgrade on Tuesday. "I get a lot of tips, that's for sure, but always in a friendly manner," former Chelsea boss Tuchel said of his interactions with England fans. "Most of them just say, 'Bring it home, Thomas'. That's basically the task."Manchester City defender John Stones has withdrawn from the squad for the upcoming games with injury. Stones has not added to his tally of 83 caps since last October. "Unfortunately, John Stones just left," Tuchel said. "He came with minor issues, muscular issues, to camp and didn't progress as we thought and hoped he would. So, he left camp this morning (Friday) because we will not take the risk. Everyone else is available."Tuchel confirmed England captain Harry Kane will lead the side in the Andorra qualifier. "Yes. He (Kane) starts. There is no balance, the competition is on and it is World Cup season," he said.England only beat Andorra, a lowly 174th in the FIFA world rankings, 1-0 when the teams met in their initial qualifier in June. "We will face in both matches a deep block and a 5-4-1 for sure in the first match and it is the challenge to overcome that quickly and aggressively and play with more rhythm than we did in the first match (against Andorra)," said Tuchel.Latvia and Albania are the other two sides in Group K of European qualifying, with the group winners booking a place at the World Cup.