England centerback Marc Guehi has attributed the team's World Cup semifinal collapse to manager Thomas Tuchel's defensive strategy, stating that the approach after taking the lead was insufficient at the highest level of competition. Argentina defeated England in the semifinal on Tuesday.
"Once we went 1-0 up, we seemed to just try and hold on, which at this level is just not enough, so I’m gutted," Guehi told BBC Sport after the match. "We should have carried on. We should have carried on pushing. It kind of felt like we scored and the mentality was, go back, defend."
England took a 1-0 lead in the 55th minute with a goal from Anthony Gordon. However, Tuchel made tactical substitutions to bolster the defense. In the 72nd minute, Gordon was replaced by centerback Ezri Konsa, shifting England to a five-person backline. Later, Reece James, Harry Kane, and Declan Rice were substituted for additional defenders and a striker.
Argentine captain Lionel Messi reportedly observed that the tactical shift altered England's mindset, leading them to abandon offensive play.
Tuchel defended his decisions, explaining that the changes were intended to help the players manage the pressure and address open spaces in the defense after conceding the goal. "If it doesn’t go well, it’s easy to say that it was wrong," Tuchel stated to the BBC. "We just tried to help the players. We conceded straight away. We decided to go to a back five because the gaps were far too open."
He also mentioned that bringing on aerial specialists like Dan Burn was an effort to strengthen the defensive box. Tuchel opted against offensive substitutions, believing they would not be beneficial.
Messi commented on the match, saying, "We felt they didn’t want it anymore and we just kept coming, that’s why after the 1-1, the crowd helped us again once more, and as I said, we are happy because it was a close match. We always want to win, and also because it takes us to play another World Cup final."
The loss ended England's World Cup campaign, while Argentina advanced to the final.