Today's Talking Points
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1England have a German manager — Thomas Tuchel — for the first time in history. He won the Champions League with Chelsea, which means he actually knows how to win things, which is a new vibe for the England job.
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2Harry Kane is captaining them at his third World Cup. He's England's all-time top scorer and has never won a single trophy. Not one. The nation watches every tournament wondering if this time will be different.
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3Jordan Henderson is at his fourth World Cup at 35, which basically nobody expected given he went to Saudi Arabia and everyone wrote him off. He's now level with a record set in the 1950s.
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4Nine players in the squad have never been to a World Cup before — Tuchel's clearly not afraid to gamble on youth, which is either refreshing or terrifying depending on how the first game goes.
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5They open against Croatia on June 17 in Dallas — the exact team they beat to reach the 2018 final, and who beat them in the Euros semi-final. It's become England's recurring nightmare fixture.
🍺 Top Thing To Say Down The Pub
Tuchel's the first German to manage England, which is either very brave or a very good joke depending on your age.
🚫 Avoid Saying
"Are they going to bring it home?" — everyone says this, it stopped being funny in 2021, and any actual fan will clock you as a tourist immediately.