Thomas Tuchel’s position as England manager is under scrutiny after a 2-1 World Cup semi-final defeat to Argentina, but former captain Alan Shearer insists his time is not up — even as Jurgen Klopp was forced to deny fake quotes attributed to him about the Three Lions boss.
Tuchel was hired to win this tournament, as he said himself when he took charge in January 2025. Instead, England exited at the semi-final stage. Shearer, writing for the BBC, described the defeat as “extremely frustrating”, particularly because he felt England had a good chance of reaching their first World Cup final in 60 years. He criticised Tuchel’s tactics: “He got things wrong with the way we retreated after scoring and his substitutions did not help.”
“Shearer backs Tuchel despite World Cup defeat as Klopp denies fake quotes.”
Despite the disappointment, Shearer argued Tuchel should stay. The German signed a two-year extension in February and will lead England into the 2028 European Championship, which the country will co-host. “Just because Tuchel did not deliver does not mean his time should be up,” Shearer wrote. “I don’t believe any of the criticism he has faced will faze him either.”
Meanwhile, former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has angrily denied reports that he commented on Tuchel’s performance. In a video on his official Instagram page, the 59-year-old said: “Today I got a lot of messages about things which I found on social media that I said something about the England game and Thomas Tuchel … It’s not true.” He added that he had not spoken to anyone for three to five days and would next speak in public on Sunday at the final. The fake quotes attributed to him included lines such as: “People always speak after the game like coaching is easy … It doesn’t work like this.”
Despite calls for Tuchel to be sacked just 18 months into his reign, FA chiefs are keen to keep the former Chelsea boss in charge for the next major tournament. England had finished top of Group L, then beat DR Congo, co-hosts Mexico and Norway to reach the semi-finals, where they were undone by Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina in Atlanta. Shearer noted that Tuchel’s defensive shift, which had worked earlier in the tournament, “cost us a place in the final”.
Tuchel has faced intense scrutiny since the defeat. But with a contract extending to Euro 2028 and a co-hosted tournament on home soil, the decision over his future remains unresolved.
