England go into their last-16 tie against Democratic Republic of Congo as overwhelming favorites, but in a World Cup that has seen both upsets and late winners, head coach Thomas Tuchel says there will be no overconfidence on his part against a team with nothing to lose. Tuchel’s England top their group and will face DR Congo, the top team in third, on Thursday.
Already in the 1/16 finals, Germany lost to Paraguay on penalties, as did the Netherlands at the hands of Morocco. Brazil needed a late winner to see off Japan, and Norway did the same against Ivory Coast.
“I think this can reassure us in some ways,” Tuchel told reporters on Tuesday.
“It’s just a narrow difference, these are intense football matches and it helps us not to overestimate. It helps put what has happened at this World Cup and in world football into the right frame.”
“Teams are well motivated, teams defend at the highest level, teams are well prepared. And it’s hard for any team to break a team, especially when you come in as a favourite, especially when you face teams that have nothing to lose.”
DR Congo are one of those teams and the Congolese, who held Portugal to a draw, went further than they or anyone else expected.
“We expect the same kind of performance as we faced against Ghana or against Panama,” Tuchel said.
“We are the favorites and they can play as the underdog, which suits them very well.
“We have the team spirit, we have the determination, we have the quality to turn half-chances into chances, make crosses difficult, come with numbers in the box and decide this match in perhaps a very small number of key moments.”