Henry Winter’s World Cup Diary, Day 19
Click here to read World Soccer’s guide to the 2026 World Cup
Atlanta
When it became clear yesterday that England have brought a psychologist to the World Cup to help end 60 years of hurt, one fan observed, “can he play right-back?” It would be useful given Thomas Tuchel’s nightmare at right-back with Tino Livramento returned home injured and Reece James and Jarell Quansah missing today’s round of 32 tie with DR Congo because of hamstring and ankle issues respectively.
Tuchel clarified that “we have psychologists with us in camp” but not specifically to prepare players for penalty shootouts. Sven-Goran Eriksson always lamented not taking a psychologist to the 2006 World Cup which ended in a miserable shootout loss to Portugal, one of seven sudden-death defeats out of 11.
The FA already has a shootout process – “protocol,” Tuchel calls it – developed when Gareth Southgate was head coach. When Southgate was on ITV punditry at Euro 2012 (when England went out to Italy on pens) he said England should bring a psychologist with them to tournaments. Certainly a psychologist, often Dr Pippa Grange, helped England under Southgate. England won three of four penalty shootouts under Southgate. The pressure remains as the players know the level of opprobrium that crashes down on an England player who misses a penalty.
It’s on days like this that even Tuchel might have wondered whether he should have brought Harry Maguire and Trent Alexander-Arnold. England’s round of 32 tie against DR Congo could end in penalties, and Maguire and Alexander-Arnold nailed theirs in shootouts. Depending who is on the field after two gruelling hours, Tuchel will have an order of takers: Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Gordon and Elliot Anderson. It’s all planned. “We will have an order in place.”
“It’s very difficult to simulate the pressure,” Tuchel added. “The FA has a programme in place since years. We follow this programme into detail.” It’s pure marginal gains: repetition; improving breathing and lowering pulse-rate by taking a second or so longer when placing and addressing the ball; the goalkeepers have essential pointers about each opposing taker written on stickers on their water-bottle. “Every keeper has his own routines,” Jordan Pickford said. Players have a “buddy” system to share the emotional load when they return to the halfway line.
It’s partly repetition, homing technique, and also psychological. “I heard Thierry Henry say he can’t remember his walk up in his first penalty shootout for France,” Tuchel recalled. “He can’t even remember anything from the middle line to the penalty spot, you cannot train that, but it comes down to execution. It comes down to repetitive action.”
DR Congo are good at this challenge from 12 yards. They have won four of six shootouts since 1998. When asked whether his team practise penalties, DR Congo’s head coach Sebastien Desabre observed firmly: “We practise penalties because we are professional. We have a lot of quality in penalties. We can switch the keepers, too.”
They sound prepared. England will need to be.
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An eclectic clientele gathered in a Mexican bar in Atlanta last night: Tony Bloom, who’d just given a successful talk to Stateside Brighton & Hove Albion fans; an England fan in a waistcoat with “Southgate You’re The 1” on the back; and assorted Chelsea, Manchester United and Bradford City fans. All fascinated by Mexico’s controlled win over Ecuador. They dominated the first half, scoring two well-taken goals, and then defended in depth in the second. If England do get past DR Congo here today, Thomas Tuchel’s side face a huge challenge in the Azteca. Mexico are running on adrenalin and patriotism. They are also running on supreme organisation and determination to protect their goal. Everyone is focusing on the altitude but it is the attitude of Raul Jimenez and his team-mates that will most worry Tuchel.
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During a brief exchange with the Fox Sports pundit and former USMNT World Cup player Alexi Lalas on X yesterday, we basically agreed to disagree on the usefulness of hydration breaks. My argument was that they disrupt the natural flow. Lalas said it was part of a changing game, that the US had come up with innovations before and that the English weren’t keen on change. I’m not against innovations – only bad ones like the hydration break. One of the real match-day successes of the World Cup has been an English invention – the refcam. The FA pushed for its use in grassroots to protect officials, and then lobbied FIFA to trial it more broadly, firstly to gather evidence if refs are attacked and secondly to give the broadcast paymasters more dramatic footage. They are certainly getting that – thanks to English innovators.
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Click here to read World Soccer’s guide to the 2026 World Cup
