Dan Burn has given his verdict on Thomas Tuchel’s recent comments on England fans at Wembley.
It’s an important international break as teams compete in crucial World Cup qualifiers, with Dan Burn and Anthony Gordon the two Newcastle United players in the England squad.
The Three Lions faced Wales in a friendly on Thursday night, cruising to a 3-0 victory with goals from Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins and Bukayo Saka.
Anthony Gordon impressed with his lively display but manager Thomas Tuchel wasn’t completely pleased after his side’s second exciting performance in a row.
Speaking to ITV after the match, Tuchel expressed his frustration with the subdued atmosphere at Wembley Stadium.
“I think the players delivered a lot to get more from the stands,” he said.
“It was difficult to keep everything going in the second half. We did excellent, we deserved to win.
What more can you give them? Twenty minutes, three goals. The way we attacked Wales and we didn’t let them escape.
“If you hear for half an hour [it was] just Wales fans. It’s a bit sad because I think the team deserved big support.”
Burn has now agreed with Tuchel.
Speaking to Chronicle Live, Burn said: “The manager is right in what he is saying, we performed really well and sometimes we could do with a bit more.
“The crowd was full but they can help us push for more, stay on the front foot and keep that mentality and keep going forward.
“But nearly 80,000 is a great thing and the Wales fans were brilliant. Wales are a very good team, we saw against Belgium what they could do.”
In his post-match press conference, Tuchel was asked to elaborate on his comments: “I love English football and I love English football fans and the support they give, but I think the atmosphere did not match the performance on the field.
“We had excellent support in Serbia, but [here] we were 3-0 up after 20 minutes, we had ball win after ball win after ball win and I felt like why is the roof still on the stadium? That’s just it, it’s nothing big.
“We will do everything again to be infectious, there’s no problem. I’m sure we will get everyone going – it is on us. But tonight I was a little underwhelmed.”
It’s not really that surprising that Wembley was quiet for a friendly in October, with atmospheres at the national stadium never lively for games that have little significance. Even international derbies.
England – as they did in September at Villa Park and have been doing more recently – would benefit from moving such games away from Wembley to different parts of the country, where fans who don’t often get to see their country play will get the chance to.
Dan Burn is desperate for more England caps
Burn was left on the bench for the friendly but continues to love the chance to represent his country, something he thought had passed him by.
The giant defender is now in his fourth successive squad and has to be in contention to be on the plane to North America next summer, but is eager to add to his three caps.
So much so that he would do anything to get on the field.
Burn added: “I will play goalkeeper if the manager asked! I just want to be on the pitch, I have waited so long to be an England player, I just want to make the most of it.
“I want to get as many caps as I can. The most important thing is the team are doing well so whatever I am asked to do I will.
“Hopefully, I will get a game in the qualifiers this week. It is just a great honour for me to be given the chance to represent my country, and something I never ever thought I’d be able to do.
“So every time I come to Wembley and wear the shirt is a proud moment.”
Burn will be hoping to see some action when England face Latvia in a qualifier that could seal their place at the World Cup on Tuesday.
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