Thomas Tuchel is not yet ready to sing the national anthem yet but has said he considers England home as he prepares to lead the nation into this summer's World Cup.
All eyes will be on the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium on Wednesday as the back-to-back European Championship runners-up look to go one step further and match Sir Alf Ramsey's heroes of 1966.
England's eagerly anticipated Group L opener against Croatia also represents Tuchel's first match at a major tournament, having secured World Cup qualification in flawless fashion.
The German coach's passion and love for his adopted homeland has been clear since his unveiling 20 months ago, but he does not feel like he has yet earned the right to sing 'God Save the King.'
"Not yet," Tuchel said. "I think we are not there yet. At the very end maybe.
"I am still a bit shy. I don't want to offend people and don't want to have the focus on that now."
Tuchel laughed when asked if he knew the words -- "it's not so difficult," he said -- and his love for England is clear.
That love affair began during his time as Chelsea boss and means the self-confessed Anglophile now considers England home.
"I feel basically at home when I land," he said. "I would say now 'I fly home,' I fly home to my home in London and it feels like home when I land in London and I'm in England.
"I can't explain it but it felt like this from the first weeks at Chelsea. It just felt so good to be in the country and in the city of course, and be a part of Premier League.
- England at the 2026 World Cup: Schedule, results, how to watch
- England World Cup squad: Injured Tino Livramento replaced by Trevoh Chalobah
- Hamilton: Key issues for England at 2026 World Cup: Fatigue, fitness and do Gordon, Stones start?
"Every day was a gift, almost. It just felt like to be in the right place with the right mindset of players, and what the league brings out of players and what the fans expect from the players, and from the coach.
"It just made me feel very comfortable, and I liked it from the first day.
"It was so easy for me to adapt, that's why I cannot say often enough, I'm grateful, and it's an honour for me to be England head coach and nobody wants it more than me."
