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If Jude Bellingham hopes to earn his place back into the English strongest starting eleven, he would be wise to do away with the unnecessary reactions. His reaction after noticing that his number was about to come up following a night of inconsistency in Tirana was not good enough.

"I’d rather not blow it out of proportion but I hold to my words 'conduct is crucial' and respect towards the teammates who come in," stated Tuchel. "Decisions are made and you must accept them being a professional."

The midfielder must understand. It was unnecessary for a tantrum. The captain had only moments earlier made it the Three Lions leading by two in an inconsequential match, with only six minutes remaining and Bellingham, following an inconsistent display, was just shown a yellow for fouling the Albanian striker. This was hardly a questionable change. Actually it might have been reckless for Tuchel to keep Bellingham on the pitch considering there was a chance he would rule himself out of the opening game of the competition by receiving a second yellow card.

Turning the Spotlight to Himself

Yet Bellingham made himself the center of attention. There was no disguising the player's frustration as he realized that his replacement was ready for another player. He flung his arms in the air and even though he accepted the coach's hand on his way to the touchline there was no doubt that the head coach was not impressed.

Here lies the test for Bellingham. He congratulated his teammate for sending in the ball for the captain to nod home the team's second, but his other actions was self-defeating. It's not like protesting was going to reverse the substitution. The German has stressed repeatedly following squad protocols and the necessity of acting professionally.

Facing Examination

The midfielder, left out of last month’s squad, has faced close inspection upon his return to the squad recently. Essentially his place has been in question and he hasn't helped his case with his response to coming off the pitch as the national team wrapped up a perfect qualifying campaign by seeing off a tough opposition from the Albanian team.

The Coach's Plan

This implies the jury is out on whether England operate most effectively including Bellingham. The evidence here was open to interpretation. There was experimentation from Tuchel early on. Under him, England have gained the squad a clear system over the past few matches, building with a defensive midfielder, a box-to-box player, a No 10 and out-and-out wingers, but the approach changed against Albania. Jarell Quansah was made his England debut, the midfielder made his first start for England and the positioning of Stones as a makeshift midfielder meant there was similar look to Manchester City’s historic treble-winning side.

A Game of Two Halves

Bellingham was a mixed bag. He set up a shot for Eze in the latter period but frequently appeared overly eager to shine. He made many hurried and errant passes. An unnecessary confrontation with a rival player in the early stages. England were ragged for much of the second half. One Albania chance resulted from Bellingham squandered possession. The yellow card came after he was dispossessed by Broja and committed a foul on the former Chelsea striker.

Squad Strength Shows

In the end the bench quality proved crucial. The coach brought on Foden, who seemed more naturally fitted to the position occupied by Bellingham earlier in the match, and Saka. Later Saka delivered a corner for the captain to open the scoring. It highlighted that corners and free-kicks will be crucial in the upcoming tournament.

Connection Remains

Still, though, the focus was on Bellingham. The quality of Rashford’s assist for the second goal was a little lost in the ridiculousness of the substitution incident. After the final whistle, everyone was watching the midfielder. Tuchel walked up behind him and guided the player towards the travelling England fans. Their connection is not damaged. Tuchel is not willing to discard him at this stage. Yet whether he is willing to give him centre stage is not guaranteed.