England ‘reacts’ to Thomas Tuchel clash, FIFA controversy exposed – World Cup summary

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There have been reactions to Thomas Tuchel’s funeral and some heated FIFA controversy after England booked to play Argentina in the World Cup semi-finals.

Ahead of this week’s semi-finals, we bring you all the best World Cup stories from the past 24 hours

Officials firmly denied claims of a rift between Jude Bellingham and Thomas Tuchel after England’s dramatic 2-1 victory over Norway in extra time. Tensions arose after Tuchel described the Three Lions as “lucky”, prompting a sharp reaction from Bellingham, who defended his team-mates’ efforts under difficult conditions. England captain Harry Kane has stepped in as a mediator to defuse a post-match spat that erupted between the manager and his star midfielder. Kane insisted that Tuchel was only trying to take the best players out of his squad because he knows the level the team can reach. The massive controversy surrounding FIFA’s decision to suspend Folarin Balogun’s red card continues to rage on despite the United States’ withdrawal from the tournament. It was revealed that of the 18 FIFA officials, only Mohammad Al Kamali, head of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, decided to lift the suspension, and the other 17 were not even consulted after a phone call between President Donald Trump and the FIFA president. Former England international Joe Cole has issued a bold warning to Argentina ahead of their World Cup semi-final match in Atlanta. He insisted the Three Lions had the attacking power needed to “put Lionel Messi to bed” and stop the reigning champions. Senegal parted ways with head coach Pape Thiau after a dramatic round-of-32 exit at the 2026 World Cup. Thiaw’s tenure came to an abrupt end despite previous success on the continent as Teranga Lions gave up a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 to Belgium in extra time. Alexander Soros’ partner has released an official statement addressing the wave of horrific online slurs directed at the player. The hurtful comments surfaced shortly after Norway suffered a heartbreaking defeat to England in extra time in the quarter-finals. Aston Villa midfielder Morgan Rodgers has slammed the “ridiculous” debate surrounding Jude Bellingham’s role as England’s Premier League number 10. Rodgers stressed that this argument is ridiculous given that the six-goal superstar won the World Cup on his own. Lionel Messi clashed with the referee in a heated moment during the World Cup win over Switzerland, accusing the referee of being extremely rude. The Argentina captain did not hesitate to put the referee in his place on the pitch during the tense final match. French Football Federation president Philippe Diallo has issued a sharp reaction to highly controversial statements made by Spanish politician Mariano Rajoy. FIFA faces further backlash over its decision in favor of Argentina, with Diallo condemning comments claiming France won the World Cup “without the French” and labeling them as having unacceptable racist overtones. Following a controversial VAR call in Egypt’s win over Switzerland and Lautaro Martínez avoiding a second yellow by jumping on a hoarding to celebrate with fans, it has been revealed that while the team have been given permission to wear black armbands in honor of legendary former captain Antonio Ubaldo Lattin, France were denied a request to do the same for coach Didier Deschamps’ late mother. Read more: England have new signing Jude Bellingham. ‘Spider camera’ goal verdict: Furious Norway refuses to withdraw