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For Bellingham to hopes to force his way into the English strongest squad, it would be smart to cut out the unnecessary reactions. The way he reacted upon realizing that he was about to come up following a night of mixed performance in Tirana was not good enough.

"I’d rather not make more out of it but I stand by my words 'behaviour is key' and respect for the teammates who enter the game," stated Tuchel. "Choices are taken and you must accept them as a player."

There is a lesson for Bellingham. It was unnecessary for a strop. Kane had just put England leading by two in a meaningless qualifier, the game had six minutes to go and he, who had not played particularly well, had just been booked for fouling the Albanian striker. This could scarcely be called a controversial substitution. In fact it might have been reckless for the head coach to leave Bellingham on considering it was possible Bellingham would make himself ineligible of the opening game of the World Cup by picking up a another booking.

Turning the Spotlight Upon Himself

But Bellingham turned the spotlight on himself. No one could overlook the young midfielder's annoyance upon understanding that he would be substituted for another player. He threw his arms up and even though he accepted the coach's hand on his way to the sideline it was clear that Tuchel did not appreciate it.

This represents the hurdle facing Bellingham. He praised Rashford for sending in the ball for Harry Kane to nod home his second goal, but the rest was self-defeating. It is not as if complaining was going to change Tuchel’s mind. The German has talked so much about following squad protocols and the necessity of behaving correctly.

Facing Examination

The midfielder, not included in the team last month, has been under scrutiny since coming back to the squad this month. Practically he was being assessed and his actions haven't benefited him by reacting to being taken off as the side completed a perfect qualifying campaign by seeing off a tough opposition from their opponents.

The System and the Setup

It means it's unclear on if the team function at their best including Bellingham. The performance was inconclusive. Tuchel tried new things from the manager in the beginning. Under him, England have gained England organization and direction in recent months, employing a No 6, a central midfielder, a No 10 and specialist wingers, but there was a different feel against Albania. Jarell Quansah was handed his international debut, Adam Wharton started for the first time for England and the use of Stones as a makeshift midfielder meant there was similar look to the Manchester club's team that won three trophies.

Mixed Performance

His performance was inconsistent. He made a chance for his teammate during the second half but at times seemed too desperate to impress. There were a lot of hurried and errant passes. There was a needless bit of aggro with a rival player early on. The team looked disjointed after halftime. An opportunity for Albania came after Bellingham gave the ball away. His caution occurred when he lost the ball to Broja and fouled the attacker.

Squad Strength Shows

In the end the bench quality proved crucial. The coach brought on Phil Foden, who looked more comfortable to the role in which Bellingham operated during the first half, and the Arsenal winger. Later Saka provided a corner kick for Kane to open the scoring. It highlighted that corners and free-kicks will be crucial in the upcoming tournament.

Bridge Still Stands

However, the focus was on Bellingham. The brilliance of Rashford's cross for the second goal was partly forgotten due to the fuss of the Rogers substitution. At the end, everyone was watching Bellingham. Tuchel walked up from behind and guided Bellingham to acknowledge the travelling England fans. The bond between them remains intact. Tuchel is not willing to discard Bellingham yet. But if Tuchel is inclined to offer him centre stage remains in doubt.