Thomas Tuchel's own words came back to haunt him after England's World Cup final defeat to Argentina, as he faced the same accusations of negativity and fear that he had previously aimed at predecessor Gareth Southgate. Tuchel, who replaced Southgate in early 2025, had criticised the former manager's approach, saying England were 'more afraid to drop out of the tournament than having the excitement and hunger to win it.'
Tuchel's criticism of Southgate
In one of his first interviews as England manager, Tuchel was asked about the nation's Euro 2024 campaign. He said: 'The identity, the clarity, the rhythm, the repetition of patterns. The freedom of players, the expression of players, the hunger. They were more afraid to drop out of the tournament, in my observation, than having the excitement and hunger to win it.' Fans lauded the comments, with one saying: 'This is what we want to hear. He's spot on as well with his assessment of the last tournaments.'
World Cup final defeat
However, after England took a 1-0 lead in the World Cup final against Argentina, Tuchel's team retreated. Opta stats revealed that in the 30 minutes after England scored, they had just 12% possession—'the lowest by a team in the lead for at least 10 minutes at the World Cup in the last 60 years.' Argentina equalised and eventually won the match, leaving Tuchel facing the same criticisms he had made about Southgate.
Pundits react
Former England captain Wayne Rooney said: 'If you're an attacking player on that pitch and you go 1-0 up, and you see the changes that the manager is making, you're losing belief. It's a panic, a real panic, you can't go a goal up and then surrender the ball.' Joe Hart added: 'I think Gareth Southgate will be at home watching this game. He took a lot of criticism when it came to the big moments with England about shutting up shop, but I don't see anything's changed.'
Argentina manager's view
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni offered a scathing analysis: 'We all felt it, we smelt blood and went for it. There was a vacuum inside England's goal. After England scored we showed a lot about our football. It's more than tactics and playing pretty football.' Gary Lineker labelled Tuchel's decisions 'unfathomable,' while Chris Sutton called it a 'coaching catastrophe.'
Tuchel defends approach
Tuchel defended his tactics, saying: 'We tried to help, but of course the responsibility is on the coach; if it doesn't go well, it's easy to say it was wrong. The team gave everything and we were very, very close. I think we deserved to be up 1-0. We played one of our better matches, maybe the best match in the circumstances. The team was top, but we couldn't bring it over the line.'
