England's World Cup dream is over. Argentina turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory in the semi-final at the Atlanta Stadium — and the fallout has already begun.
Thomas Tuchel insists he has 'no regrets' despite his team 'getting too passive' after Anthony Gordon's goal put them ahead. But Wayne Rooney did not hold back. The former England captain, analysing the game for the BBC, accused Tuchel of panic.
“Wayne Rooney blasts Tuchel for 'surrendering' after England lose World Cup semi-final 2-1 to Argentina.”
"It's a panic, it's a real panic. You can't go a goal up and then surrender," Rooney said. "Surrender the ball and surrender any opportunity of trying to get the second goal."
The pattern was familiar. After the second-half hydration break, Tuchel replaced goalscorer Gordon with defender Ezri Konsa. Later, Dan Burn and Nico O'Reilly came on for Reece James and Declan Rice. Two minutes after the double change, Argentina's Enzo Fernandez equalised. Lautaro Martinez then scored the winner.
Burn had previously been used to see out wins against Mexico and Norway. This time it backfired. Rooney said the substitutions made players lose belief.
"If you’re on that pitch, go 1-0 up and then see the changes the manager is making… you are losing belief," he explained. "There's only so many times you can get away with it. You start thinking 'we're going to sit back, how are we going to get through this?'"
Rooney added: "The gamble he made was to go with five at the back, which allowed them to dictate the game. The decisions Thomas Tuchel made, we have to be honest, have cost us tonight."
The defeat ends England's run in the 2026 World Cup, a tournament that had seen Jude Bellingham drive them past Norway in the quarter-finals with an extra-time winner. But against Argentina, the world champions, Tuchel's game plan unravelled — and the questions over his future have already begun.
