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FWC Finals on Sport Nation guide"Finding a way to fail": England savaged by former greats
SEN • July 16th, 2026 1:04 pm
The English media and former players have been typically scathing of their national coach after a World Cup exit in the semi-final against Argentina.
England, who took the lead through Anthony Gordon in the 55th minute, conceded twice in seven minutes to fall at the penultimate hurdle of the FIFA tournament.
Thomas Tuchel is in the line of fire for playing too defensively after his team had taken the lead with former England striker Wayne Rooney leading the charge.
“We got ourselves in such a good position and we didn’t know what to do,” Rooney said on the BBC.
“We sat back, allowed them to come on to us. They put us under pressure and we cracked. As soon as they got the first goal, it was inevitable they’d get the second.
“When you go on top, you have to stay on top. We go 1-0 up, then sit back, make changes, go five or six at the back. If you allow (Lionel) Messi and Argentina to come onto you, you’re asking for trouble.”
Jamie Carragher did not hold back in his column for the UK Telegraph.
"England appointed Thomas Tuchel to be a game-changer in the latter stages of the World Cup," he wrote.
"Against Argentina, he was. The manager’s substitutions and formation shift were the biggest factor in the latest demoralising, painful defeat.
"The dreadful ending to the semi-final in Atlanta exposed the single biggest flaw in the Football Association’s headhunting of a world-class manager: it is fanciful to think that even the greatest coaches are immune to mistakes when decisive moments arrive on the biggest stage.
"Going so defensive prematurely had dire consequences.
"Ultimately, the 2026 World Cup will be remembered as another missed opportunity. We are forced to accept that no matter who the England manager is or how big their reputation is, we keep finding a way to fail."
Rooney’s BBC peers agreed with Joe Hart saying: “Gareth Southgate took a lot of criticism for the big moments with England, when they had the lead in big games and shutting up shop.
“I don’t see that anything has changed in that big moment out there. For as much praise as we have given Thomas Tuchel, for him to change it as soon as he did, that is him saying he didn’t believe in his team, that he didn’t think they could land any more punches on Argentina.”
Micah Richards was equally unimpressed: “Thomas Tuchel was brought in to be the difference. Tactically, we all thought he got it wrong today.
“When we went to five at the back. I thought we could have kept the momentum going and brought on wingers. Ultimately, we didn’t have the answers.”
Former England captain Alan Shearer lamented the lack of attack form the players as well as the coach’s strategy.
“He played his cards very, very early, Thomas, in the hope that England could hang on, and it’s backfired. But those decisions are the ones that make such a difference.
“We were praising him for what he did, going to five at the back, in the previous two games when England were under huge pressure.
“Now I guess we’ve gone the other way and are thinking: ‘Could he have just changed something different and put a bit more pace on?’ Because everything was coming back at England.
“They didn’t have an outlet, because whenever they won the ball they had no energy. They were physically and mentally done once Argentina got that first goal.”
Shearer then tweeted: “Best team won. The changes left us without an out ball. We had 6 defenders on with 25 mins left. Frustrating.”
For his part, Tuchel defended his substitutions but knew the blame would fall at his door.
“In the previous match, we also made attacking substitutions,” he said.
“But today we decided to go back to a five-player defensive line because the opposing team was sending more and more crosses, so we had to close the spaces and be strong in the aerial duels.
“After the goal, we dropped back and waited too much, and the crosses and chances kept coming.
“I tried to help the team, but the responsibility certainly falls on the coach, and there’s no dodging that at this level.”
