Micah Richards has described Thomas Tuchel's decision to leave Bukayo Saka as an unused substitute in England's World Cup semi-final defeat to Argentina as 'bizarre', after the Arsenal winger scored a hat-trick in the bronze-medal match against France.
Saka's hat-trick heroics in bronze-medal win
England defeated France 6-4 in a ten-goal thriller in Miami on Saturday, with Saka scoring three goals. The 24-year-old became only the fourth England player to complete a World Cup hat-trick, after Sir Geoff Hurst, Gary Lineker and captain Harry Kane. Saka finished the tournament with a goal or assist every 59 minutes he played.
However, just three days earlier, Saka was an unused substitute as Argentina came from behind to eliminate England in the semi-final. Tuchel instead brought on Ezri Konsa, Nico O'Reilly, Dan Burn, Ivan Toney and Marcus Rashford in the closing stages, a decision he defended amid widespread criticism.
Richards and Shearer question Tuchel's tactics
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, former England defender Richards said: 'I understood why Tuchel played Morgan Rogers in that [Argentina] game for the transitions, but for him [Saka] not to come on... We've been talking about Saka and his fitness. Him and Rice, their fitness all tournament has been a question, but for him not to feature is just bizarre. I can't get my head around why you wouldn't have Saka.'
Richards added: 'The thing is with Saka as well, he gets you fouls and he gets you up the pitch. How many times have you seen him going down the wing and he puts his arm out and then just buys a foul.'
Former England striker Alan Shearer echoed Richards' confusion: 'We were always told he wasn't quite right, he wasn't 100 per cent fit, and if he wasn't fit then he wasn't going to start him. So yeah, it was strange that he didn't at least come on in that semi-final and then to start against France. But it was brilliant for him scoring a hat-trick.'
Saka's fitness concerns and Tuchel's explanation
Tuchel had previously expressed concerns over Saka's fitness ahead of the tournament due to an Achilles problem, stating the attacker was not '100 per cent' before England's group-stage clash with Croatia. However, Saka told the BBC after the France win: 'Of course, I would love to have played more but it's too late to talk about that. I try to do my talking on the pitch and it's done now. So let's move on. I'm fit.'
Mainoo's absence also under scrutiny
Another topic of debate was Tuchel's treatment of Kobbie Mainoo, who did not play a single minute for England at the World Cup. An official statement confirmed the Manchester United midfielder was ruled out of the bronze-medal match due to injury. Gary Lineker said: 'When he performed for Manchester United last season he was absolutely terrific and England at the Euros two years ago. Unless there's some mystery issue then it's quite baffling to me.'
Richards speculated that Mainoo's omission might be tactical: 'Maybe he doesn't fit into the way Tuchel wants to play because if you look at Kobbie Mainoo, he's someone who wants to get on the ball. We've talked about the players who were left out, Cole Palmer and Phil Foden, they liked to get on the ball as well. Maybe he just wasn't suited to what Tuchel wants to do.'
