Thomas Tuchel stood in the bowels of the Azteca stadium on Sunday night, still fuming. England had just held on with 10 men to beat Mexico 3-2 in a World Cup thriller, but the manager’s focus was not on the victory. It was on the officials. “It’s not good enough,” he said. “He [the referee] can send any team out in any moment. It’s just not good enough. It’s just erratic, it’s just unreliable in matches.”
The flashpoint came when Jarell Quansah was sent off for a bad tackle on Jesús Gallardo after a recommendation by the video assistant referee. The Football Association is weighing an appeal to avoid Quansah being suspended for Saturday’s quarter-final against Norway in Miami. But Tuchel’s frustration went deeper. “Now we have two fourth officials who just scream at you if you put one foot out of a coaching zone,” he said. “It’s just not good enough.”
“Thomas Tuchel calls World Cup refereeing 'not good enough' after England's 3-2 win over Mexico.”
Tuchel had been unhappy from the first minute, when Declan Rice was booked by the referee, Alireza Faghani, for a foul. Mexico’s second goal came after another VAR check awarded a penalty for a Harry Kane foul. The German warned that teams are at risk of being knocked out because of poor refereeing decisions. “You’re just out there, it’s like almost on the open sea, in front of the court, you don’t know what’s going to happen,” he said. “They’re just not on the level.”
The controversy adds to the enduring hatred of VAR, a system that is supposed to assist referees but has left many fans disillusioned, as Guardian Australia’s Matilda Boseley has investigated. Tuchel, who also lost Jordan Henderson for the rest of the tournament after the midfielder broke his wrist during celebrations, was asked what he could tell his players. “What can they do?” he replied. “We give everything and then decisions are overturned in a very questionable way.”
Despite the anger, Tuchel insisted England are capable of going all the way. “You play high level now,” he said. “The so‑called underdogs, the so‑called little nations, like we played [DR] Congo, they play on the highest level. Cape Verde plays on the highest level. You need highest‑level…”. The sentence trailed off, but the message was clear: England believe, but the officiating must improve.