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In the past, Anthony Barry featured for Accrington Stanley. Currently, he's dedicated supporting the head coach win the World Cup in 2026. His path from athlete to trainer started through volunteering for Accrington's Under-16s. He remembers, “Nights, a small field, tasked with 11 vs 11 … poor equipment, limited resources,” and he fell in love with it. He had found his destiny.

Staggering Ascent

Barry's progression is incredible. Commencing as Paul Cook’s assistant, he established a name through unique exercises and strong interpersonal abilities. His club career took him to Chelsea and Bayern Munich, plus he took on roles with national teams across multiple countries. He's coached legends including top footballers. Now, with England, it’s full-time, the peak according to him.

“Everything starts with a dream … However, I hold that dedication shifts obstacles. You have the dream then you break it down: ‘How do we do it, day-by-day, step-by-step?’ We aim for World Cup victory. Yet dreams alone aren't enough. It's essential to develop a systematic approach enabling us to have the best chance.”

Detail-Oriented Approach

Obsession, particularly on fine points, defines Barry’s story. Working every hour day and night, the coaching duo push hard at comfort zones. The approach feature mental assessments, a strategy for high temperatures for the World Cup in the US, Canada, and Mexico, and creating a unified squad. The coach highlights the national team spirit and avoids language such as "break".

“This isn't a vacation or a rest,” Barry says. “We had to build something where players are eager to join and they're pushed that going back is a relief.”

Driven Leaders

Barry describes himself and Tuchel as extremely driven. “We aim to control all parts of the match,” Barry affirms. “We want to conquer the entire field and that’s what we spend long hours toward. We must not only to stay ahead with developments but to surpass them and create our own ones. It's an ongoing effort to have this problem/solution-finding mentality. And to clarify complicated matters.

“We have 50 days with the players before the World Cup finals. We need to execute a complex game that offers a strategic upper hand and explain it thoroughly in our 50 days with them. We need to progress from idea to information to understanding to action.

“To create a system for effective use in that window, we have to use the whole 500 we’ll have had after our appointment. During periods without the team, we have to build relationships among them. We must dedicate moments communicating regularly, we have to see them in stadiums, understand them, connect with them. Relying only on those 50 days, we have no chance.”

Upcoming Matches

The coach is focusing for the final pair of World Cup qualifiers – against Serbia at Wembley and away to Albania. The team has secured their place at the finals with six wins out of six without conceding a goal. But there will be no easing off; on the contrary. Now is the moment to reinforce the team’s identity, to gain more impetus.

“We are both certain that our playing approach should represent the best aspects about the Premier League,” Barry explains. “The fitness, the versatility, the robustness, the work ethic. The England jersey should be harder than ever to get but light to wear. It should feel like a cape and not body armour.

“For it to feel easy, we need to provide a system that lets them to move and run as they do in club games, that connects with them and allows them to take the handbrake off. They must be stuck less in thinking and increase execution.

“There are emotional wins for managers at both ends of the pitch – playing out from the back, closing down early. However, in midfield in that part of the ground, we feel the game has become stuck, particularly in the Premier League. Coaches have extensive data these days. They can organize – defensive shapes. We are really trying to focus on accelerating the game in that central area.”

Passion for Progress

Barry’s hunger to get better is all-consuming. During his education for the Uefa pro licence, he had concerns over the speaking requirement, since his group featured big names such as Frank Lampard and Michael Carrick. So, to build his skill set, he went into tough situations available to him to improve his talks. Including a prison in his home city of Liverpool, where he coached prisoners for a training session.

Barry graduated with top honors, with his thesis – about dead-ball situations, for which he analysed numerous set-plays – was published. Lampard was among those convinced and he brought Barry on to his staff with the Blues. When Lampard was sacked, it said plenty that Chelsea removed most of his staff except Barry.

His replacement with the club became Tuchel, within months, they claimed the Champions League. When Tuchel was dismissed, the coach continued with Potter. Once Tuchel resurfaced with Bayern, he got Barry out away from London to work together again. English football's governing body see them as a double act like previous management pairs.

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