2026-07-16 08:59:20
Thomas Tuchel took responsibility as his tactical decisions backfired in England’s World Cup semi-final loss to Argentina.
The Three Lions appeared on course for a place in the showpiece when Anthony Gordon’s goal gave them the lead before two late goals from the South Americans turned Wednesday’s (15.07.26) clash in Atlanta on its head – as the coach acknowledged that his substitutions led to England becoming too defensive.
Tuchel said: “We decided to go to a back five because the gaps were far too open.
“Argentina played with more risk, played with more rhythm and played with the feeling maybe that they had nothing to lose any more, which freed them up and pulled us back. Because we obviously played suddenly with a feeling that we had a lot to lose. Of course the responsibility is on the coach and if it doesn’t go well it’s easy to say it was wrong.”
Tuchel claimed that he had “no regrets” about his approach despite the game playing out in the same way as many of England’s tournament exits over the years.
Asked if mentality was behind the Three Lions relinquishing leads, he said: “I don’t believe so much in an English thing and a curse or whatever. It’s repeating itself in different moments. It’s different coaches, different players, different situations.
“What cost us today was that we were not active enough in any structure. I can understand these discussions are out there and of course a million coaches after the game know it better. You can discuss this with a million coaches. I have to make a decision on the pitch. It’s how I analyse the match and I take the responsibility.
“At the moment no regrets. The team gave everything and we were very very close. We deserved to be up 1-0. We played one of our better matches, maybe our best match under the circumstances. The team was top – we couldn’t bring it over the line.”
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