Thomas Tuchel accepted responsibility for England’s defeat (Image: BBC)
After England lost 2-1 to Argentina in the World Cup semi-finals, manager Thomas Tuchel turned the blame on himself and took full responsibility. With just six minutes remaining in Atlanta, the Three Lions were leading and hoping to reach the finals for the first time since 1966. But in the end, Tuchel’s replacement was costly, with the price paid for adopting a conservative approach after taking the lead.
Tuchel moved to a back three formation in the 72nd minute, dropping goalscorer Anthony Gordon and Ezri Konsa. With eight minutes remaining, Dan Byrne and Nico O’Reilly were introduced for Reece James and Declan Rice. However, Tuchel’s team had no attacking outlet. Argentina kept up the pressure in search of an equalizer, and in the 85th minute Enzo Fernandes scored a 20-yard equalizer from a corner kick. Two minutes into stoppage time, Lautaro Martinez completed the comeback by heading in Lionel Messi’s perfect cross, sealing a place in the final for the holders.
Former England captain Wayne Rooney heavily criticized Tuchel on the BBC after the match, saying the German made a mistake in setting up in the closing stages. Rooney said: “There was panic. We couldn’t get a goal up and give the ball away, we didn’t have a chance to score a second goal. The pressure was on Argentina. If you were an attacking player on that pitch and you saw the changes the manager was making in a 1-0 situation, you wouldn’t believe it.”
“We expected more in this game. We thought we could do better, especially at 1-0. I think Tuchel’s decision cost us tonight. The changes didn’t help us. That’s the job of a top manager, they watch the game. A top manager counters what’s going on. They try to come forward more and change the tempo. I think he was wrong.”
And Tuchel was furious about his tactics, telling the BBC: “We’re disappointed. We were close. We were too passive after scoring and we conceded too many chances. We couldn’t turn the ball around and we conceded too many crosses, chances and shots.”
“We were close, but we couldn’t keep raising the level after scoring.” Asked specifically about his substitutions, the head coach said: “Well, I made an attacking substitution in the last game as well. We tried to help the players. We conceded goals right away. There were too many gaps, so we decided to go to the back five. They won every header and kept crossing.”
“We went with five at the back to close the gap inside and be stronger in the air. Because right after the goal, we allowed too many crosses and too many chances without substitutions. We tried to help, but of course the responsibility lies with the manager. It’s easy to say it didn’t work.”
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England could not hold off defending champions Argentina at the death (Image: Getty)
“We can’t do anything without the ball. We couldn’t get out. We wanted to score the second goal, but we didn’t feel that the attacking substitutions helped. We kept the 4-4-2, but we became more and more passive, we couldn’t win the ball or keep possession. It wasn’t a structural problem. We didn’t change anything after the goal, but the game changed completely.”
“But it’s OK. I understand the argument. I can talk to a million coaches about this. I have to make the decisions on the pitch. The responsibility is mine. So far I have no regrets. The team gave everything and we were very close.”
“We deserved to lead 1-0. We played the better game, probably the best game in the circumstances. The team was on top. We couldn’t get over the line. No, I have no regrets at the moment.”
Asked if England fans had seen “Tuchel’s team”, the perplexed German added: “I can’t answer that question because I don’t really know what that means. It’s…I don’t know. I think we saw a strong team mentality throughout the game and I think we played like they did.”
“We played against the strongest teams in our group, we traveled long distances, we traveled a lot, we played at high altitudes, we played with 10 players, we played in the heat. We overcame all the obstacles. It was a very close game today. Now is not the time to analyze the entire tournament. We were eliminated because we lost important games.”
Thomas Tuchel’s England squad suffers heartbreak in Atlanta (Image: Getty)
Captain Harry Kane told the Beeb: “It was a real grind for the players, everyone, the team, the staff, the fans. We played well for the majority of the game. Once we were up 1-0 we looked like we were going to hold on, but at this level it’s not good enough. It just grinds.”
“We’ve worked hard to get here and the players have worked hard to give it their all, sweat, blood, tears, whatever it is. It’s just gut-wrenching that we didn’t get what we got today. (At 1-0) we struggled to put pressure on the ball. We pressed them hard in the first half and the start of the second half, putting a lot of pressure on them, especially high up the pitch.”
“That allowed us to win the ball and control the game a little bit better. After the goal, I don’t know if they put more players forward or if we just couldn’t match them man-to-man, but it was wave after wave. We were trying to hold on, but the players were making blocks. In the end it wasn’t enough.”
“The players were ready at all times during the game. When we took the lead, the message was to go again and get another goal. After they scored two goals, we tried to find something, but we couldn’t get any momentum back into the game.
“There were a lot of good moments in this tournament, a lot of good games, and it’s another semifinal. We’re talking about knocking on the door. We’re close, but we need to find the missing piece in the final stages of the tournament. These tournaments take that away. So much effort and pressure and mentality. We’ve shown a lot of that throughout the six or seven weeks we’ve been together, we’re just missing that last piece.”
