Tuchel defends England semi-final substitutions in Atlanta but accepts they came too early

Thomas Tuchel said he stands by the defensive substitutions he made in England’s World Cup semi-final defeat by Argentina in Atlanta this summer, but conceded their timing was wrong. He made the remarks in a documentary on the England app.

England took the lead through Anthony Gordon on the hour, but were immediately on the back foot as Argentina chased the game; Djed Spence produced a last-ditch tackle and Jordan Pickford a big save directly before the hydration break. It was after that sequence that Tuchel brought on the defender Ezri Konsa for Gordon as he sought to shore up the team. Tuchel said fatigue and the prior success of defending with a back five in knockout wins over Mexico and Norway were factors in his thinking.

Addressing criticism in the documentary, Tuchel rejected suggestions he should be blamed alone, saying: "You can try to kill me here. But it’s my scar, it’s not your scar." He added: "No one is more hurt than me, no one wanted it more."

Tuchel described Argentina’s approach as relentless and said it compelled him to alter his gameplan, using the phrase: “Argentina then play very, very quickly. Sorry for the language, [they played] fuck-it football: ‘We have nothing to lose. Let’s fuck it.’” He called conceding a big chance before the water break a key moment for his decision-making and said: "We will not survive. This is waiting for death. We don’t have ball possession, we’re not defending good, we’re not defending properly in our 4-4-2. We need help."

He outlined the structural changes he made in response, saying he moved to a 5-3-2 and then a 5-4-1 to cope with Argentina’s width and aerial threat. Tuchel argued that, based on what he had seen and the information available, multiple offensive changes from Argentina required a defensive solution: "I think from what I saw and the experience, the information and the level of craziness Argentina put in – change after change after change, it was just one offensive change after the other. That was my solution to the problem." He defended the intervention as a coach’s duty: "That’s what the intervention of a coach is. I try to help, you don’t implement anything for your ego or whatever. You just try to help."

Tuchel accepted the tactical switch ultimately backfired as Argentina produced late goals from Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez in the final stages of the game, which ended England’s dreams of making a first World Cup final since 1966. He has faced calls to be sacked in the aftermath of the semi-final defeat.

Tuchel conceded the substitutions were made too early, saying: "And it’s too early. Too early for that mindset." The admission came as part of his explanation of the decisions that preceded England’s semi-final exit.