Thomas Tuchel gives makeshift England an 'OK' grade after Uruguay draw

Thomas Tuchel wanted to see what the extended England squad could do in a test against a quality opponent, and after Friday's 1-1 draw with Uruguay at Wembley Stadium the Three Lions manager's verdict is in.

"Absolutely OK with the performance," Tuchel told ITV. "We tried and tried and were the better team overall.

"We had some big chances from set-pieces. We were forced into changes. We had a lot of new players and changed a lot of new players and for all of that I am grateful for the test."

Tuchel sent many of England's regular starters to the stands to watch Friday's match, with the likes of Harry Kane, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, John Stones, Marc Guehi and others given the night off.

That meant England's starting XI featured lesser-used players such as Fikayo Tomori, Dominic Solanke, James Garner and Djed Spence against a strong Uruguay side, and Tuchel gave those players a vote of confidence following the match.

"I liked how we played," he said. "We knew it was a difficult opponent. [Uruguay head coach] Marcelo Bielsa told me months ago he would arrive with his best team.

"Everyone did good. I liked a lot of stuff today."

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