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If Jude Bellingham hopes to earn his place once again into England’s best team, the smart move to eliminate the dramatics. His reaction after noticing that he was about to come up following a night of mixed performance in Tirana fell short of expectations.

"I prefer not to overstate it but I stick to my words 'behaviour is key' and respect towards the players who come in," stated Tuchel. "Choices are taken and you must accept them being a professional."

There is a lesson for Bellingham. It was unnecessary for a strop. The captain had recently scored to make the national team leading by two in a meaningless fixture, there were six minutes left and he, who had not played particularly well, was just shown a yellow for a foul on an opponent. It was not a controversial substitution. In fact it would have been unwise for the manager to leave Bellingham on because it was possible the midfielder would make himself ineligible of the initial fixture of the tournament by picking up a another booking.

Drawing Attention to Himself

But Bellingham drew all eyes toward himself. It was impossible to miss the 22-year-old’s annoyance as he realized that his replacement was ready for Morgan Rogers. He threw his arms up and even though he shook Tuchel’s hand after making his way to the bench there was no doubt that the head coach was not impressed.

This represents the hurdle for Bellingham. He praised Rashford for delivering the cross for Kane to head in the team's second, but everything else was self-defeating. It's not like protesting was going to reverse the substitution. The coach has stressed repeatedly honoring the team structure and the necessity of showing proper conduct.

Facing Examination

Bellingham, not included in the team last month, has faced close inspection since coming back to the squad recently. Essentially he has been on trial and he has not done himself any favours by reacting to his substitution as the national team completed a flawless qualification run by overcoming a tough opposition from the Albanian team.

Tactics and Formation

This implies opinions are divided on whether the squad perform optimally when Bellingham plays. The performance was not definitive. Some new ideas were tested from Tuchel at the start. Under him, England have gained England a clear system lately, employing a holding player, a central midfielder, an attacking midfielder and dedicated wide players, but it felt different in this match. The young defender was handed his international debut, Adam Wharton made his first start for England and the use of Stones as a makeshift midfielder created a faint echo to the Manchester club's historic treble-winning side.

A Game of Two Halves

Bellingham was a mixed bag. He made a chance for Eberechi Eze in the latter period but often looked overly eager to shine. Several rushed, misplaced passes. An unnecessary confrontation against an opponent at the beginning. England were ragged during most of the second period. An opportunity for Albania followed he lost the ball cheaply. The yellow card was shown after he was dispossessed by Broja and brought down Broja.

Depth Makes the Difference

Ultimately England’s depth made the difference. Tuchel introduced Phil Foden, who appeared better suited to the spot that Bellingham had played in the opening period, and Saka. Later Saka delivered a corner kick for the captain to break the deadlock. It highlighted that dead-ball situations will play a key role next summer.

Bridge Still Stands

However, all talk was about Bellingham. The excellence of Rashford's cross for Kane’s header was somewhat overlooked due to the fuss of the Rogers substitution. At the end, everyone was watching Bellingham. Tuchel walked up to his side and pushed the player towards the away supporters. Their connection is not damaged. The coach isn't ready to discard Bellingham yet. However, whether Tuchel is inclined to grant him a starring role remains in doubt.