FIFA World Cup 2026: England Tournament Thread [R]

Rice is an exceptional player but he's not a controller. Anderson did his best but he's not going to sit there and dictate games. Wharton or Scott could have done that job

 

Well if he doesn't take it seriously, it should be a sackable offence. One of the major problems we have is that we only face elite teams in tournament knock out phases, hence we lack experience against those teams. You could practically go through qualifying by fielding a championship team because the opposition is generally so poor.

 

What's also laughable about Tuchel is that, if the pre-tournament rumours were true and he'd found a reason to leave Jude Bellingham out or decided he wasn't fit enough to be included and had otherwise stuck with the same side he'd used throughout qualifying (with Morgan Rogers instead of Bellingham), England would have been on the first plane home after the Rd16.

Instead, Bellingham ended up being the only reason England even reached the semifinal. The one player who ultimately saved him, was the one he disliked the most on a personal level and was forced to select him because of the media backlash that would have likely triggered if he left Bellingham at home after omitting the likes of Palmer, Foden, Gibbs White & Trent etc

 

I don't think he can afford to treat the NL like that after yesterday. The two games v Spain are going to be quite big for him I think to show he can change this teams mentality.

 

I think we were sold down the river in qualifying because we had such an easy ride. Southgate really effed up getting us relegated because it meant we didn't play anyone who could test us. The warning signs were there in the games against Japan and Senegal when even though they're not top teams this side that Tuchel had gone with is exposed. He wasted an international window in March by effing about with the squad. He never had a settled team. Spain Argentina etc are so good because they have a group of players and a system that they know and are comfortable with. It reminds me of Roy Hodgson in 2016 when he didn't know his best team. Putting rogers on the right in a semi final when he hadn't used him there before is madness and then he doesn't even bring saka on. It's ********ing baffling his decisions. How can an apparently top manager not know his system or his best team going into a world cup. He's practically dragged these players through hell without any backup. He had 15 starters he said, you can't go into a tournament with a 26 man squad relying on the same small group of players in those conditions

 

At least Spain at Wembley is the first one of the four matches so no excuse of resting players. (Through I can see a lot of withdrawals and the Pl clubs trying their luck against a weakened Tuchel),

And Spain away being the last one means he will know what he needs to get certian position . Let’s hope it’s a match where if we win we top the group or at least come second.

 

Pedant - 6 matches

 

Tuchel didn't do his homework. That's probably what infuriates me the most.

The way we lost yesterday was eerily similar to how we lost to Croatia in 2018. Back then, Southgate lacked courage, and Henderson put in one of the worst performances I've ever seen in an England shirt. But Southgate also had a less talented squad to work with.
The Euro final against Italy was different. That one was largely on Southgate because he had attacking options on the bench that could have changed the game, but he didn't use them.

To his credit, he learned from those mistakes. His approach at the last Euros was far more positive. Against Spain, I don't think he got much wrong. Spain were simply the better team. He made positive substitutions and tried to win the game—it just wasn't enough.

I knew appointing Tuchel was a mistake. I'd never been a fan of him, but I told myself, "Maybe I'm wrong—he's a serial winner, after all." Well, he isn't delivering. If this is what we're getting, then sack him. The worst part is that we don't even enjoy watching England anymore.

 

To be fair the reaction to Tuchel on this forum has consistently been pretty skeptical over his tactics and selections, and the contradictions between his stated aims and actions.

For the wider public and media he has clearly benefited from an emperors new clothes effect based on having a champions league on his CV. I lost count of the amount of times I saw people praising his amazing subs (which outside the Croatia game were either very conventional changes or flat out bad), or how much more entertaining England had been now we weren't managed by Southgate. Also helps he's a charismatic speaker, but the contradictions between what he says or does, or the frankly sometimes very strange justifications for things (Quansah's selection a prime example) get overlooked.

 

Are you sure about that?

 

I just don't get it. How can you have a world cup like Tuchel did. We all those obvious mistakes. And still have him being England coach going forward.

 

I imagine the FA argument will be that we're the 4th ranked team in the world so he achieved the minimum requirement.

 

It is the FA I don't get. Why did they give him two more years including the golden opportunity of a home tournament before seeing him take charge of one? He was hired for this World Cup. He knew that. Why give him longer before he has been tested? It makes no sense. Just means we probably have to pay a fortune to sack him, which they won't do.

Are the FA happy that we went far in the tournament but threw away hope in the semi final? They shouldn't be. Up to yesterday I hoped there was some sort of masterplan or genius tactics behind the scenes that would be unleashed when needed. Instead we had the opposite.

We should not be trusting another tournament to this failure. Especially not a home tournament with all the advantages that brings. Get someone new in now. Carsley or whomever. Give them two years to put together a more possession based approach.

 

We were the fourth ranked side before the tournament and we'll be the fourth ranked side afterwards, that isn't improvement. It is stagnation.

 

I'm kinda over it now. I used to cry when we went out of tournaments but nowadays I'm numb. These players are perennial losers. Zero bravery. I've just accepted that we won't win anything in my lifetime

 

The rankings are just arbitrary anyway. Belgium were ranked No. 1 for ages and didn't win anything. We might be ranked 4th best in the world, but the eye test says we're not.

 

To be clear that isn't my view.

 

Having slept on it

Tuchel was brought in to win the tournament. He failed. He should go
The idiots who gave him an extension should also go

 

I mean the 4 matches in the September/October break. There is bound to lots of rotation for all the teams but Spain being first means he should go strongest for them.

 

Looks like the BBC are not really bothered by the third place match. It will be hosted in Salford by Jason Mohammed and presumably featuring the likes of Ellen White and other b list pundits.

 

The Tuchel verdict on bigsoccer has been a mixed bag.
Very few people were openly anti-Tuchel from the early outset.

Some supporters did become increasingly critical of his squad selection, particularly after the Congo game and then many reserved final judgement until after the Argentina semifinal. Even then, most of the criticism focused almost entirely on who he selected rather than on his underlying football philosophy or the way he had England playing.

It was almost as if the pro-Tuchel crowd assumed if he 'just learns from his mistakes' and made a few squad changes for the Euros, England will suddenly become a much better side. I've never seen any evidence to support that assumption.

Also many are missing the the most important detail; Tuchel didn't arrive at this squad by accident. He selected it deliberately because it reflected the type of football identity he has been building ever since he took charge. You can debate individual decisions, maybe if he had picked someone like Adam Scott instead of Mainoo, or Garner instead of Henderson etc. But those players are broadly cut from the same cloth as Rice and Anderson. They wouldn't fundamentally change England's identity or solve the key technical shortcomings in this England team.

What's surprised me most is in spite all of this, a significant section of the media and fans were heavily backing Tuchel to continue through to the Euros before the Argentina game and after we were 2nd best against Norway. Then, almost straight after yesterdays defeat, they performed a complete 180-degree turn on him.

 

I'm not bothered about it either

 

Yes England's playing style in the Euro24 knockouts was far more fluid and technically secure than this WC under Tuchel.

Its not even comparable. Southgate played Trent at CM in the groups in a 433 and we looked dysfunctional. But we looked like a different team in the knockouts and people often conflate the two when they remember back over the whole tournament

 

Yep, he just needs sacking because he's not going to change. Very stubborn man. I also wonder how many of the players who he didn't pick will be p!ssed off with him, and won't be arsed about playing for England again, so long as he's in charge.