England boss Thomas Tuchel insists the use of Declan Rice by Arsenal in a dead rubber Champions League match is a good example of how Premier League clubs are looking after their own interests.
The German, who oversaw a 2-0 win over Albania in his first match in charge of the Three Lions on Friday, is on the other side of the fence now he’s swapped club football for international management.
Tuchel – who has managed Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, Paris St Germain and Chelsea – is currently preparing to face Latvia in his second match in international football.
The new England boss acknowledges the concerns of club managers at a crucial stage of the season but insists his concentration has to be on the Three Lions.
Tuchel told reporters: “I know that this window, this camp, is where the clubs play a very crucial time of the season. They play for championships, they play for quarter-finals in the Champions League.
“We are very well aware of it but we have also our own goals, we have our own targets. The players are keen to play and it has to be like this.
“I always accepted it as a club manager. I never got involved in line-ups, I never pushed any national coach because I was hoping that my players get picked, I was also hoping that they are proud to play.
“Of course, you’re never happy if something happens. No-one can predict that there is no accident, but we have a World Cup qualifier and we’ll take responsible decisions.”
MORE ENGLAND COVERAGE ON F365…
👉England flop Foden embarrassed as Lewis-Skelly becomes 21st player to shame him
👉Kane still behind Sancho in ranking of every foreign-based England player
👉Keane warns England star that he ‘won’t be playing’ in next match after failing to impress Tuchel
Arsenal played Rice in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 clash against PSV Eindhoven, despite winning the first leg 7-1, and, despite not hearing from any club managers this week, Tuchel has pointed out that they will always look after their own needs over England.
Tuchel added: “After a 7-1 first leg and Declan Rice played the next match with Arsenal, I didn’t have the feeling that they think so much about us.
“I don’t think we have to break our heads about this. I take care about the players. We take care about the schedule, but it would be the wrong signal to tell players now, ‘Hey, you have tough matches coming up, so I rest you now’.
“We have a qualifier to play, we do what’s good for us. We monitor them, we are in contact with the clubs, we are in high-level monitoring where the status is and we will not take any unprofessional risks.
“Because first of all I feel responsible for the players. I don’t want the player to be injured, I want the player to play quarter-finals of the Champions League – all of them – because I want to watch it, I want to see it.
“So, this is where it is and in the end we take care about us and the clubs take care about themselves and the main focus is taking care of the players.”