England fans were sure to make their feelings known after coming under fire from Thomas Tuchel over a “silent” atmosphere in last week’s friendly against Wales.
The Three Lions returned to World Cup qualifying action in Latvia off the back of an emphatic 3-0 win at home to Wales on Thursday, after which Tuchel criticised the lack of noise produced by his own supporters.
The travelling fans in Riga responded by breaking into a series of sarcastic chants that challenged Tuchel’s claim in the opening minutes of the clash, most prominently singing: “Are we loud enough for you?”
The fans also stood in defiance against their manager, singing: “Thomas Tuchel, we’ll sing what we want!”
They then asked Tuchel to put his money where his mouth is, chanting “Thomas, give us a song! Thomas, Thomas, give us a song!”
While the German manager did not respond with a vocal performance of his own, he did acknowledge the fans with a wave, which was met by a cheer from the away end.
The supporters later turned their attention to Gary Neville, reportedly branding him a “w*****” after he revealed he had taken down a Union Jack flag at one of his development sites, while also lamenting division caused by “angry white men” in the UK.
Tuchel was left unimpressed with his own support after last week’s 3-0 win over Craig Bellamy’s Wales, which saw a significant contingent of the 70,000-crowd leave before full-time amid severe delays on the London Underground.
“The stadium was silent,’ Tuchel said. ‘We never got any energy back from the fans. If you just hear Wales fans, it’s a bit sad. The team deserved big support. What more can we give in 20 minutes?
“The support in Serbia was absolutely fantastic. I love English football fans but the atmosphere today didn’t match the performance on the field.
“I stand by this statement. We cannot do more than being 3-0 in a derby. I was thinking: ‘Why is the roof still on the stadium?’
“I would have wished for a bit more support in phases where it gets difficult. In the second half to get behind us, there was a bit too much support for Wales.”
Tuchel couldn’t complain about the support in Latvia, however, with England’s rowdy travelling contingent pushing their side to the brink of World Cup qualification.
The Three Lions are in total control in Riga thanks to goals from Anthony Gordon and Harry Kane, with their place at next summer’s tournament finals sealed with a win.
