Tuchel’s timid tactics lead to England’s World Cup exit
Thomas Tuchel was appointed by the Football Association to do what Gareth Southgate could not, which was to take one of the most talented England squads in generations and turn potential into prizes, reports BritPanorama.
That was the deal. Not another respectable run, not another surge to the semis, and certainly not another tournament ending with the same familiar sense that England had frozen when the pressure became unbearable.
Yet when the moment came for Tuchel to justify his appointment, last night against Argentina, he produced a display of in-game management so timid, confused and damaging that the FA should now be asking whether he remains the right man to lead England into Euro 2028.
England were 1-0 ahead against Argentina in a World Cup semi-final, with Anthony Gordon having scored a fine goal and Lionel Scaloni’s side looking unsettled. Football was on course to come home, Argentina were on track to go home, and the Three Lions were poised to roar against Spain in the final on Sunday.
Instead, with his side clinging on to the most precarious of leads, Tuchel retreated. Gordon was removed for Ezri Konsa with almost half an hour, including stoppage time, still to play. Declan Rice later made way for Nico O’Reilly, while Reece James was replaced by Dan Burn as England gradually filled the pitch with defenders and abandoned almost any realistic hope of carrying an attacking threat.
It was a gamble, one almighty roll of the dice. Now, it’s safe to say, it spectacularly backfired.
England dropped deeper, Argentina grew in confidence and Lionel Messi was given the freedom to probe repeatedly around the penalty area. Between Gordon’s opener and Enzo Fernandez’s equaliser, Tuchel’s side had just 12 per cent possession, a remarkable statistic which exposed the extent to which they had surrendered control.
Scaloni knew exactly what had happened. “The opponent doubted themselves a bit,” the Argentina manager said afterwards. “We smelled blood and went for it. We all felt it.”
Emiliano Martinez was just as blunt, revealing that Argentina sensed England were retreating rather than attempting to finish the contest. “We felt them going backwards and backwards rather than going forward,” he said.
Those comments should trouble the FA because England’s fear was not merely obvious to supporters and pundits. It was felt by the opposition, who recognised the change in mentality and punished it ruthlessly.
Fernandez equalised from distance before Lautaro Martinez headed home Messi’s cross in stoppage time, completing a comeback that had seemed increasingly inevitable from the moment Tuchel began dismantling the team that had taken the lead.
Afterwards, the England manager defended his decisions by arguing that his side were already struggling before the substitutions. “If it doesn’t go well, it’s easy to say that it was wrong,” Tuchel said.
“We decided to go to a back five because the gaps were far too open. Straight after our goal, without a substitution we conceded way too many crosses and chances.”
That explanation may contain an element of truth, but it does little to excuse what followed. Tuchel was hired precisely because elite managers are expected to influence matches when momentum begins to turn, not simply acknowledge after the event that their team could no longer escape its own half.
Wayne Rooney said Tuchel’s decisions cost England the game, while Alan Shearer argued that he had played his cards too early. Both were correct.
England had talented attacking players capable of carrying the ball, winning fouls and forcing Argentina to defend, yet Tuchel increasingly stripped the team of those outlets and left Harry Kane isolated while the defence absorbed wave after wave of pressure. Not even the brilliant Jude Bellingham could thrive in that system.
This is no isolated concern, either. England were, in truth, unconvincing for large spells of the tournament, relying on moments of individual brilliance against Mexico and Norway while producing flat performances against Ghana, Panama and DR Congo.
The FA must, therefore, consider more than the simple fact that England reached another semi-final. Tuchel was not appointed merely to match Southgate’s record. He was brought in to improve upon it, and in the biggest game of his reign, he repeated the very mistakes his predecessor was criticised for making.
Pep Guardiola, consequently, should now enter the conversation. The former Manchester City manager is the best in class, a coach who has dominated English football, won a remarkable amount of titles and built teams that control matches rather than retreat from them.
There is no guarantee Guardiola would accept the job, of course, particularly with other nations likely to court him before the 2030 World Cup, but England should at least make the call.
A home European Championship is approaching in 2028, while the following World Cup will be staged in Spain, Portugal and Morocco. It may seem harsh, but England cannot afford to drift through another cycle simply because Tuchel has a contract. He was appointed to win the World Cup.
When England stood 30 minutes from the final, he made decisions that helped throw that opportunity away. That should have consequences.
