Thomas Tuchel said he had no regrets — but he was drowning out the noise. England had led Argentina 1-0 after Anthony Gordon’s 55th-minute strike, a World Cup semi-final within their grasp at Atlanta Stadium. Five minutes from time, Enzo Fernandez equalised from the edge of the area. Then, deep into stoppage time, Lautaro Martinez rose to head home. The dream was over. 2-1. Out.
Tuchel’s response was immediate and defensive. “We got too passive within our structure,” he said afterwards. “I think ball possession plays a crucial role. It’s maybe not in our DNA like it is in the Spanish, Argentinian or Brazilian DNA. We were not physical enough. We didn’t stop runs arriving in our box.” But those words did little to quieten the criticism.
“England lose 2-1 to Argentina after late collapse; Tuchel faces criticism from Lineker and Richards; Argentina players wave Falklands banner.”
Gary Lineker — now a Netflix pundit — claimed Tuchel “went completely against” his own attacking mantra. The England boss had told his players to “release the handbrake” before the quarter-final against Norway, a game they won thanks to Jude Bellingham’s extra-time strike. Against Argentina, the handbrake was slammed on. After taking the lead, Tuchel switched to a low block, at one point fielding six defenders after introducing Nico O’Reilly, Dan Burn and Ezri Konsa. He did not make an attacking substitution — Marcus Rashford and Ivan Toney — until England were 2-1 down. It was too late.
Micah Richards was blunter. He branded Tuchel’s explanation “nonsense.”
The defeat forces England into Saturday night’s bronze final against France — a fixture Tuchel previewed in a tense media conference. But the fallout is wider than tactics. After the match, several Argentina players waved a banner reading “The Malvinas are Argentine”, reviving the Falklands sovereignty dispute. The White House has backed Argentina’s position, escalating a diplomatic row that now involves Prime Minister Starmer and President Trump.
For Tuchel, the questions are not going away. “I will not engage in this kind of game,” he snapped when asked about his future. But the damage may already be done.