Thomas Tuchel has said he believes England struggled live up to expectations at Euro 2024 because the players were more afraid of being knocked out of the tournament than they were focused to win it.

Despite reaching the final in Berlin, Gareth Southgate’s England team were criticised for their uninspiring displays and lack of attacking threat in a competition they were favourites to win.

Asked in a news conference on Thursday about an interview he had given to ITV in which he indicated that he felt the team struggled with the pressure at the Euros and their performances suffered as a result, Tuchel doubled down on his opinion.

“It was just my feeling. It was my feedback and first of all it was my feeling in front of TV just way long, long before I even know that I may be in charge,” Tuchel told a news conference on Thursday.

“That was my feeling. I think it’s pretty clear statement and don’t know how to put it in other words, and I think it has to be the other way around.

“I want us to play with the excitement and the hunger and the desire to win and the joy to win and the chance of failure is a part of it, especially in football, but we want to implement this togetherness and the joy that everyone feels safe to express themselves and give their very best. And we play that. It’s recognisable.

“We play with the hunger and the joy to win and not with the fear to lose. Anything can happen in football, we know this, but the focus is on winning is on a higher number, higher number of touches in the opponent’s box, a higher amount of attacks, a higher amount of high ball recoveries. This is where the focus is.”