There is 'no curse' on England ahead of World Cup, says Tuchel
England have not won a major title since the 1966 World Cup, something Thomas Tuchel believes can change if they qualify for the tournament.
Thomas Tuchel believes the success of England's women's and Under-21s teams proves that there is "no curse" on his side ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
The Three Lions have not won a major tournament since their World Cup triumph in 1966 and lost back-to-back European Championship finals in 2021 and 2024 under Tuchel's predecessor, Gareth Southgate.
However, the Lionesses retained their Euros crown in July, beating Spain on penalties to do so, a month after the Under-21s also earned consecutive victories at the Euros.
England sit top of Group K in their World Cup qualifying, having won all three of their matches so far under Tuchel without conceding.
Their next qualifier sees them host Andorra on Saturday, before they travel to Serbia on Tuesday as they aim to close in on a place at next year's tournament.
When asked if the success of England's other teams placed the men under any extra pressure, Tuchel noted that it does the opposite.
"No, not at all. If it is something, then it is a good omen," Tuchel said in his press conference.
"I was so happy for [Lionesses boss] Sarina [Wiegman] and [Under-21s boss] Lee [Carsley] because they made it, and they made an extraordinary effort and an extraordinary success with back-to-back victories.
"It is possible [to win a trophy with England], there is no curse on English teams. So, it is a good omen, and we will do our very best to follow the example."
England have won all seven of their matches against Andorra without conceding a single goal – they have only faced Luxembourg (nine) and San Marino (eight) more often while winning every single game.
They are also on a 34-match unbeaten run in World Cup qualifiers (W26 D8), since a 1-0 loss at Ukraine in October 2009.
Tuchel has been dealt an injury blow in the build-up to the match at Villa Park, with John Stones leaving the camp having failed to recover from a muscle injury.
"Unfortunately, John Stones just left [the camp]," Tuchel added.
"He came with minor muscle issues to the camp and didn't progress as we thought and hoped he would, so he left the camp [on Friday] morning because we will not take the risk with him, not against Andorra and, unfortunately, not against Serbia.
"Everyone else is available. We had 21 players [on Thursday] in training and 21 players [on Friday] in training, and we just need to make sure everyone is available for Saturday."
