England appointed Thomas Tuchel to change the ending. Instead, their World Cup campaign concluded with an all-too-familiar collapse.
The Three Lions were leading Argentina with five minutes remaining in Wednesday’s semi-final after Anthony Gordon scored in the 55th minute. Enzo Fernández equalised before Lautaro Martínez completed a dramatic turnaround in stoppage time, securing a 2-1 victory for the defending champions.
England had surrendered control long before the goals arrived. Between Gordon’s opener and Martínez’s winner, Tuchel’s side recorded just 12 per cent possession, according to The Guardian’s match coverage.
A new manager and a new tactical philosophy had ultimately produced the same old fear.
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Tuchel puts the system before the stars
Tuchel was appointed in October 2024 and officially began work in January 2025, rather than being appointed in March. His first matches in charge came during the March international window.
The Football Association recruited him with the explicit ambition of winning the World Cup and paired him with assistant Anthony Barry, as confirmed in the original appointment announcement.
Tuchel’s approach differed significantly from Gareth Southgate’s. While his predecessor attempted to accommodate England’s best individuals within a balanced side, Tuchel placed the demands of his system above reputation.
That philosophy contributed to Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Trent Alexander-Arnold being left out of the World Cup squad. Tuchel instead selected players capable of fulfilling clearly defined tactical roles.
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England regularly attempted to draw opponents forward with short passes before accelerating through the middle third. In attack, they created triangles in wide areas and looked for runners beyond the defensive line, although their reluctance to build through central areas sometimes made them predictable.
The second half of the opening 4-2 victory over Croatia offered the clearest glimpse of the energetic, direct football Tuchel wanted to produce.
Warning signs emerge against Norway
England reached the semi-finals after beating Norway, but Tuchel was far from satisfied with the performance.
Jude Bellingham scored twice as England progressed, yet the manager believed his side had benefited from individual moments rather than consistently executing the tactical plan.
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“The result is fantastic. We’re in the last four. It’s amazing,” Tuchel said, quoted by Sky Sports. “I’m not happy with the performance. In every sense.”
He added: “Sloppy, tactical mistakes, not fast enough. Not repetitive enough. We were lucky.”
Those comments proved significant. England had survived without playing as Tuchel intended, but Argentina were equipped to punish the same weaknesses.
Tuchel repeats the mistake he criticised
Before taking charge of his first England match, Tuchel offered a blunt assessment of the team’s Euro 2024 campaign under Southgate.
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“They were more afraid to drop out of the tournament, in my observation, than having the excitement and hunger to win it,” he said in an interview reported by The Independent.
Tuchel said England had lacked “identity, clarity, rhythm” and freedom. He wanted his team to play with excitement and accept that failure was a necessary risk in the pursuit of victory.
Against Argentina, those principles disappeared as soon as England took the lead.
Tuchel removed Gordon and added another defender, changing to a back five as Argentina increased the pressure. England stopped keeping the ball, lost their counter-attacking threat and became increasingly dependent on clearances from Jordan Pickford.
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Argentina responded in the opposite manner. Their changes were aggressive, their positioning moved higher and they continued to take risks in search of an equaliser.
One team tried to protect its place in the final. The other went out and seized it.
England’s fear survives another revolution
Tuchel’s system was not a complete failure. England reached the semi-finals, produced periods of impressive football and demonstrated greater tactical variety than in some previous tournaments.
But the defining test came after Gordon’s goal. England needed to keep possession, exploit the spaces left by Argentina and remain committed to the approach that had carried them into the lead.
Instead, they retreated.
Southgate was frequently criticised for becoming too cautious when England moved close to history. Tuchel was appointed to provide a different mentality, yet under the greatest pressure of his tenure, he made the same choice.
The personnel and tactical language had changed. When the moment demanded courage, England’s instinct had not.
