Arizona Tribune - Tuchel urges England not to get carried away plotting route to World Cup glory

The German was appointed with the task of leading England to a first major men's tournament triumph in what will be 60 years since they won the 1966 World Cup on home soil.

They were drawn in Group L along with Croatia -- who beat England in the semi-finals in 2018 on the way to losing the final to France -- Ghana and rank outsiders Panama.

"I am very excited. They got me going. Rio Ferdinand's performance was outstanding," smiled Tuchel, with the former Manchester United and England defender helping conduct the draw on stage at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.

England will be expected to ease through to the knockout stage, especially as the expanded 48-team format means the eight best third-placed teams in the 12 groups will progress to the last 32 as well as the top two.

But Tuchel warned against attempting to plot a route from there to the final at the MetLife Stadium just outside New York City on July 19.

"I played tournament football only in the Champions League at club level, but you cannot get carried away with building your way with who you are going to meet if you win the group, if you are second or whatever," said the former Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich coach.

"You just focus on the group, this is what you do, and make sure you are in the right head space.

"We need to make sure we play with the same hunger and same excitement with which we played the last three games -- this will be the target."

Tuchel's England cruised through qualifying, winning all eight games without conceding a goal against Albania, Serbia, Latvia and Andorra.

- 'No ideal scenario' -

The going will be much harder in North America in June and July, and England's route to glory looks particularly perilous, especially if all the favourites win their groups.

That would set England on the way to a possible last-16 tie against Mexico at the Aztec Stadium in Mexico City, where Diego Maradona destroyed English hopes in the 1986 quarter-finals.

A quarter-final against Carlo Ancelotti's Brazil could follow, before a possible semi-final against Argentina, the defending champions, and then either France or Spain in the final itself.

Beyond their potential opponents, England will also have to handle the possibility of playing in baking conditions as well as having to travel vast distances in between games.

It is understood there was a preference within the England camp to be based in the vicinity of Kansas City in the American midwest, but that looks unlikely now they know where the group games will take place.

While the final schedule will not be released until Saturday, England know they will begin their campaign against Croatia on June 17 in either Toronto or Arlington, just outside Dallas.

Their second game against Ghana will either be played in Boston or Toronto, before they meet Panama either at the MetLife Stadium or in Philadelphia.

"We have to wait until tomorrow (Saturday) and then we find a solution for it. I think this has to be the mindset for this World Cup -- not everything can be perfectly planned," said Tuchel.

When asked about handling the heat and potentially playing in different time zones, he said: "It is what it is and we have to find a way to accept it, build a high tolerance to all these obstacles. We cannot have an ideal scenario."

O.Brown--AT