England centre-back Marc Guehi appeared to call out Thomas Tuchel’s tactics after the Three Lions’ 2-1 World Cup semi-final defeat to Argentina.
Despite taking the lead through Anthony Gordon’s strike on 55 minutes, Tuchel’s side could not get over the line as they sat back and allowed Argentina – and, more specifically, Lionel Messi – to dictate play for much of the second half.
On 85 minutes, the 39-year-old teed up Enzo Fernández, who unleashed a sumptuous strike past Jordan Pickford to level things, but England endured more World Cup heartbreak when Messi’s cross was nodded home by Lautaro Martínez on 92 minutes, sending the reigning champions to Sunday’s (July 19) final against Spain and England to Miami for the dreaded bronze medal match against France on Saturday (July 18).After the match, several pundits criticised Tuchel’s side’s lack of desire to get up the pitch after taking the lead, as well as the German’s substitutions, with Ezri Konsa coming on for Gordon, Dan Burn for Reece James and Nico O’Reilly for Declan Rice.When England fell behind, Tuchel did introduce Marcus Rashford and Ivan Toney, but they had little impact on the game.Speaking on the BBC, former England goalkeeper Joe Hart claimed Tuchel’s tactics showed he “didn’t believe” in his team, while Wayne Rooney claimed the Three Lions “cracked”.
“We have crumbled,” Rooney said.
“It started from the manager and the decisions he made. It was too passive.
“Against this team, the world champions, you will not get away with it. This has been the biggest test and we have failed it.
“I felt the changes we made at 1-0, that if Argentina scored we wouldn’t make extra time.”England players admit tactical mistakes
And it appears even some of England’s players thought the side should’ve adopted a different approach after going ahead, with captain Harry Kane admitting: “Once we went 1-0 up we seemed to just try and hold on, which at this level is just not enough, so I’m gutted.”Also speaking after the match, Guehi said: “We should have carried on. We should have carried on pushing. It kind of felt like we scored and then the mentality was go back, defend.”
He was then asked: “Finally, there’s been so much good in this tournament and over recent years in particular. Do you have the belief that this is the group to finally get over the line and win silverware for England?”
The Manchester City defender bluntly replied: “I don’t know. I don’t know. It’s hard to think about the future right now. At this moment, it’s just disappointment. That’s all.”Despite the defeat, the FA has already publicly backed Tuchel and wants him to remain in charge until at least Euro 2028.
“It is heartbreaking to be so close,” FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said in a statement.”The players and Thomas gave it everything today and the squad, coaches and staff could not have worked harder during the tournament. I would like to thank them all and also give my heartfelt thanks to our wonderful fans here in the USA and at home. We felt your support every step of the way and we are all so disappointed not to go further.”
