Article source: morale at 2026-07-15 20:05:27
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England coach Thomas Tuchel said he had no regrets about the tactics used in England’s semi-final defeat to Argentina. England led the defending champions for a long time, but their opponents scored two goals in the 85th and 92nd minutes to ultimately lose 1–2.
Tuchel’s choice of a deep defense to maintain his lead has been criticized by many industry insiders, including Henry and Ibrahimovic, who are Fox Sports commentators, and former England captain Wayne Rooney and Alan Shearer, who are guests on the BBC.
Tuchel took responsibility for the team’s exit and said that this game could be the team’s best performance in the face of strong opposition. He mentioned the group defense after the game and defended himself: “This issue can be discussed with countless coaches, but the decision on the spot must ultimately be made by me. I formulated the tactics based on the analysis of the game, so the responsibility lies with me. At the moment, I do not regret it. The whole team tried their best, we were just one step away from winning, and the 1-0 advantage was also the result of our hard work.”
Tuchel boasted: “We played very well in this game. In terms of the current situation, this could be our best game. The team was in great shape and we didn’t manage to win in the end, but I don’t regret anything. The team showed tenacity and strong team cohesion throughout the game.”
“In the group stage we faced strong teams one after another, covered long distances, competed on plateaus and in high temperatures. We also fought ten people. We have overcome many challenges. Today we are just one step away from victory. Now is not the time to review the entire tournament. We just lost this key battle and we stopped here.”
In the 55th minute, Anthony Gordon scored brilliantly from Morgan Rogers’ cross to give England the lead. The team then replaced the main man, replaced him with defender Ezri Konsa and switched to playing with five defenders. Dan Byrne and Nico Reilly also appeared before Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez finished the game.
Faced with questions about conservative changes, Tuchel said: “In previous games I also made changes in attack. Everything we did was aimed at helping the team. At that time the defense on the pitch was leaky. The opponents were fighting for all the high balls and kept sending crosses, so we decided to switch to a five-at-the-back formation.”
“The change of five backs consisted of reducing the defensive space and consolidating the air defense. Since we took the lead, without any adjustments, the opposition’s crosses and scoring opportunities continued. We made adjustments to try to turn the situation around, but the responsibility for the failure ultimately lies with the head coach. If the results are unsatisfactory, the tactical formation will naturally be criticized.” Tuchel stated that the substitution was to stop the opposition’s crosses, but the result was seen by everyone and can be said to have no effect.
When asked at the post-match press conference whether he would continue to coach England, Tuchel refused to resign and replied: “We have one more game to play. People may not be interested in this third-place game, but my contract will last until the end of the local European Championship in 2028.”