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Should Bellingham aims to earn his place back into England’s strongest team, he would be wise to do away with the dramatics. His reaction when he saw that the substitute board was going up after an evening of inconsistency in Tirana fell short of expectations.

"I don’t want to overstate it but I hold to my words 'conduct is crucial' and respect for the squad members who come in," Tuchel said. "Substitutions happen and you have to accept it being a professional."

Bellingham has to learn. It was unnecessary for an outburst. Harry Kane had only moments earlier made it England two goals ahead in a dead rubber match, there were six minutes left and the player, after a below-par performance, was just shown a yellow for bringing down an opponent. This was hardly a questionable change. Indeed it would have been unwise for the manager to not substitute him given that there was a risk he would make himself ineligible of the opening game of the World Cup by receiving a second yellow card.

Shifting Focus Upon Himself

Yet Bellingham made himself the center of attention. It was impossible to miss the young midfielder's disappointment when he clocked that he would be substituted for Morgan Rogers. He flung his arms in the air and while he exchanged a handshake after making his way to the bench it was obvious that the head coach was displeased.

Here lies the test facing Bellingham. He congratulated Marcus Rashford for providing the assist for Harry Kane to nod home his second of the night, but everything else was self-defeating. It is not as if arguing was going to reverse the substitution. The coach has talked so much about honoring the team structure and the value of behaving correctly.

In the Spotlight

The midfielder, not included in last month’s squad, has faced close inspection since coming back to the squad recently. In effect he has been on trial and he has not done himself any favours with his response to being taken off as the national team completed a perfect qualifying campaign by seeing off a tough opposition from Albania.

The System and the Setup

It means the jury is out on how the team perform optimally when Bellingham plays. The performance was inconclusive. Some new ideas were tested from the manager in the beginning. He has given the team organization and direction lately, employing a holding player, a box-to-box player, a No 10 and specialist wingers, but the approach changed against Albania. Quansah was made his England debut, Wharton made his first start for England and the role of the defender as an auxiliary midfielder meant there was passing resemblance to City's historic treble-winning side.

Inconsistent Display

His performance was inconsistent. He made a chance for Eze in the latter period but at times seemed too desperate to impress. He made many rushed, misplaced passes. There was a needless bit of aggro with a rival player at the beginning. England were ragged for much of the second half. A scoring chance for the opponents came after Bellingham gave the ball away. The yellow card was shown after he was dispossessed from Broja and committed a foul on Broja.

Depth Makes the Difference

In the end the squad's strength proved crucial. Tuchel introduced the Manchester City player, who seemed more comfortable to the spot occupied by Bellingham earlier in the match, and Bukayo Saka. In time Saka whipped in a corner for Harry Kane to score the first goal. It was a reminder that corners and free-kicks are going to be vital at the World Cup.

Connection Remains

Nevertheless, all talk was about Bellingham. The brilliance of Rashford’s assist for Kane’s header was a little lost due to the fuss of the substitution incident. After the final whistle, everyone was watching him. The coach approached behind him and guided Bellingham in the direction of the travelling England fans. The bond between them is not damaged. Tuchel is not willing to discard Bellingham yet. Yet whether he is willing to grant him the central position is still uncertain.