England face Argentina in a World Cup semi-final on Wednesday, live on BBC One and iPlayer at 19:00 BST – a clash that comes 21 years after their last meeting and pits the Three Lions against Lionel Messi for the first time. The build‑up has been dominated by a rare public rift between manager Thomas Tuchel and match‑winner Jude Bellingham after the quarter‑final victory over Norway.
Bellingham scored both goals in a 2-1 extra‑time win, taking his tournament tally to six and putting him in contention for the Golden Boot and player of the tournament. But Tuchel was scathing in his ITV interview. “We got lucky,” he said. “We made life very, very difficult for ourselves. The result is fantastic … but [I am] not happy with the performance – in every sense. Sloppy, a lot of technical mistakes, not fast enough, not repetitive enough.”
“Jude Bellingham hits back after Thomas Tuchel says England 'got lucky' in World Cup quarter-final win over Norway.”
Bellingham pushed back, arguing that Tuchel “doesn’t know what it’s like to play in those conditions against Erling Haaland, Martin Ødegaard, Antonio Nusa and Alexander Sørloth. They’re not an easy team to play against. You can’t win every game popping the ball and making 1,000 passes – sometimes you have to win dirty and we did that today.”
Former England defender Gary Neville, speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, defended Tuchel’s approach. “Over the years, England managers have always had the view that these aren’t my players … so they can’t upset them. He doesn’t care. That’s the reason he’s got the power and strength and that is why they signed him, to disrupt.”
As England prepare for the semi‑final in Atlanta, thundery showers are forecast – but there is a key difference from previous weather concerns that remains unspecified. For now, the focus is on whether Tuchel’s brutal honesty and Bellingham’s brilliance can carry England one win away from the final.