Aston Villa star Ezri Konsa has forced himself into England contention over the past year and has already been told he has a crucial role to play under new boss Thomas Tuchel
Ezri Konsa is determined to be one of Thomas Tuchel ’s leaders in the England camp. Three Lions boss Tuchel spoke to Konsa individually and spelt out to the Aston Villa defender that he wants him to step up and have a voice on and off the pitch.
That is clearly a big show of faith in Konsa and suggests that he has got the opportunity to be one of England’s first choice starters under Tuchel. Konsa, 27, only won his first cap a year ago but won his tenth by starting Tuchel’s first game in charge against Albania which in itself was a massive vote of confidence.
England face Latvia on Monday night and Konsa wants to show again that he can lead by example and play a major part in the “togetherness” of the group. Konsa, 27, said: “That’s something that he told us, me, when he came in, how much he wanted us to be together, even more so than before.
“He wanted leaders and I think for me, especially as, on a personal level, I think that’s something that I want to try and improve on in my game. Become more of a leader, and hopefully under the boss I can do more of that.”
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Konsa impressed during the Euros and has also shone in Villa’s Champions League campaign this season. That is a boost for Tuchel because former boss Gareth Southgate ’s first choice pairing of John Stones and Harry Maguire are now both in their 30s, have missed this squad through injuries and their game time has been limited at their respective clubs.
There is an opening in defence and choosing a first choice back four – or potentially back three – is a dilemma for Tuchel but Konsa was happy to make a winning start in the manager’s first game in charge. Konsa said: “Yeah, it was nice to start the first game. I want to improve how good I am at this level. I’m just grateful that the boss put me into the team and hopefully I’ve shown him what I can do.
“It’s definitely a good vote of confidence. We’ve got another game on Monday and I’m sure other players will get the opportunity to play as well. But we go into every game, no matter who we’re playing in the game, to win, and that’s all that we want to do as players. We want to win, and no matter who we face, Latvia on Monday, we’re going to go out with the game plan and try and execute it.
“The manager has only worked with us a week now, there’s things that he wants us to improve on, and we’re going to go back to watch videos and see what he wants us to improve on.”
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Konsa also said that the players can deal with the pressure and insisted they are not concerned about the England shirt weighing heavy on their shoulders. But Konsa does believe that Tuchel has brought with him a winning mentality which can spread through the dressing room.
Konsa added: “As players you have got to deal with pressure. That’s part of the game, especially the level we are playing at. With the team we have got, especially when we are expecting to win something.
“The boss has come to win something, he’s got the winning mentality, and you can see with the CV how many trophies he has got in his career and he wants to win here.”
Konsa even suggested that there can be a danger England defenders switch off and get bored when opponents sit back as Albania did on Friday night. That is something Konsa says they have to contend with and stick to their game plan. Konsa added: “I wouldn’t say it was lack of concentration. I think it’s sometimes we find it difficult, who maybe gets a team who plays a really low block with men behind the ball.
“I suppose we do get bored sometimes, and we want to move around and it doesn’t help our structure. But it’s something that we’re going to try and improve on under the boss. I think in games like this, it is important to keep a strong structure, no matter who the team were playing against. It is important to have players in the right position and not get dragged out. I wouldn’t say it’s boredom. I mean it’s something that we can improve on as players and I am sure we will do that.”
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