In the wake of disappointment, England manager Thomas Tuchel says he doesn’t have regrets. The German manager, in his first World Cup, guided England through to the World Cup semifinals, but couldn’t bring them back to that long-awaited final.
In Wednesday’s match against Argentina, England tried to hold on after taking the lead in the 55th minute, but Argentina ended up getting the win, thanks to a miraculous comeback spearheaded by two Lionel Messi assists. Postgame, it was easy to point to Tuchel, who opted to take a timid tactical approach to preserve the lead rather than try and build on it.
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When speaking to reporters after the game, Tuchel said that he was “disappointed” by the loss, admitting that the team “got too passive” prior to conceding two late goals in a seven-minute span. But despite repeating that the team got “so close,” Tuchel said that he wouldn’t change how he approached the game.
“In the moment, no regrets. The team gave everything and we were very, very close,” he said, via BBC. “We deserved to be up one-nil, played one of our better matches, maybe the best match in the circumstances. Team was top, we couldn’t bring it over the line.”
Tuchel, though, pushed back on a question about whether the team fell short of their expectations. Even though they needed to “digest” the loss, he said, there was a lot to be proud of — given England’s tough road to the semifinals, which included a stop in Mexico City and an extra time win in the blazing Miami heat.
“We played in altitude, we played with 10 men, we played the hottest game of the tournament. We gave everything, and it wasn’t enough today,” Tuchel said, via Fox Sports.
Tuchel had been pretty critical of his team after England’s narrow quarterfinal win over Norway, though players like Jude Bellingham brushed off the criticism at the time.
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But on Wednesday, it was Tuchel’s turn to express his frustration with criticism, though he said he took responsibility for his mistakes.
“That’s just the nature of the game. As soon as you lose, you get criticized,” Tuchel said in the postgame press conference. “No one knows what would have happened if we’d made different decisions. So it makes no sense to engage in that and lose my head. I’m responsible for them, I took them, so I take the criticism, that’s just the way it is.”
Despite the loss, England still has one more match to play, facing France for third place on Saturday.
“We’re not looking so much forward to, but there is still a match to play,” Tuchel said of the matchup in his press conference.
Tuchel, who was hired by England in 2025, signed an extension through 2028 in February, and the coach said Wednesday that he planned to see it through.
“We keep on going for contract until the home Euros, and then I’m looking forward to that,” Tuchel said, before adding: “Even like now, it’s difficult to look that far ahead.”
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As of now, Tuchel still has the full support of the English FA despite the loss, per multiple reports.
