Thomas Tuchel has indicated he is willing to play Jude Bellingham as a central striker for England after a cameo up front in the 2-0 win over Czechia. Bellingham came on for Harry Kane in Prague, taking up a more advanced position than his usual one in midfield, offering the potential for an alternative to their captain and record goalscorer in the future.The Real Madrid star scored seven goals for the Three Lions at the 2026 World Cup and is regularly a goal threat for his club, with Tuchel incidating he has the attributes to be a success as a striker.I like him as a nine, Tuchel said of Bellingham. Then he can contribute to both sides and overload the sides and doesnt affect so much of the balance.We found a bit of a new role for him in the last match, as a central 10, so he can go to both sides and it is more of a 4-2-3-1 than a 4-3-3 to have Harry and Jude closer together and to give them a chance to overload both sides. We are working on that.He is a natural goalscorer and he has the hunger to be on the scoreboard. He wants to be there and have the decisive action, so it makes not a huge difference if he plays as a nine or a 10.You will not get another Harry KaneKane is, of course, still the main man up front for England, with the Bayern Munich star scoring a record-extending 87th international goal against Czechia, with the striker the favourite for the Ballon dOr after a sensational 12 months.The 33-year-old will not go on forever, though, and there are concerns over Kanes long-term successor up front. Ollie Watkins and Ivan Toney have both filled that role at the last two major tournaments, but the Saudi Arabia-based duo are now into their thirties and were overlooked for the latest Nations League squad.Dominic Calvert-Lewin remains among the options, although he too is approaching 30, leaving Liam Delap as the only England centre-forward under the age of 27 to have scored in the Champions League.You will not get another Harry Kane, first of all, Tuchel said.He is the first one to push everyone and that is his mindset and he became a very, very hardworking forward on top of his finishing skills. He is a complete package.We look for different options and solutions. We finished the game with Jude [Bellingham] up front as a number nine.There will be someone else, but it will not be Harry or a copy of Harry. We will find a solution when it comes to it but maybe not me. It might be another 10 years. Topics England National Football Team FC Bayern Munich Harry Kane Jude Bellingham Real Madrid CF Thomas Tuchel Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read Ronaldo leaves Portugal camp: How CR7s international crisis unfolded Cian Cheesbrough 30th September, 2026 Gordon showing he belongs as Tuchel hails Alexander-Arnold and excellent Hall Nicholas McGee 29th September, 2026 Czechia 0-2 England: Gordon and Kane get Three Lions off the mark in Nations League Nicholas McGee 30th September, 2026 Czechia vs England live: Confirmed teams and line ups Ben Miller 29th September, 2026 England squad announcement: Full list for Nations League 2026 Ben Miller 29th September, 2026 Czechia v England: Preview, expected line-ups, stats and where to watch Mitch Fretton 29th September, 2026
