Now I don’t want the title of this article to be misconstrued: Argentina fully deserved to reach their 2nd successive World Cup final. Lionel Scaloni’s band of battle-hardened warriors are perhaps one of the most resolute international sides I have ever seen.
As I said in a previous article: Argentina are 2010’s Atletico with Messi-magic sprinkled over it. But we knew that about them. The real revelation from last night’s semifinal came from the losing camp. Thomas Tuchel was brought in to reinvigorate an English squad that had grown overly dogmatic and defensive under Gareth Southgate. He passed the initial ‘vibes’ test and seemed to have brought a more positive direction to the squad. But he retreated in frankly mindboggling fashion last night, parking the bus with the best part of 40 mins to go against the reigning champions. What could go wrong? Isn’t that exactly the sort of negative behaviour that Tuchel was meant to eradicate?
A long time coming
Last night’s scenes shouldn’t have been surprising to anyone paying attention. England played one sensational half of football this entire World Cup (the 2nd half of their Group Stage match against Croatia). England played with the handbrake off that evening, liberating themselves from those Southgate straitjackets. But let’s just fast-forward to their supposed crowning achievement: victory over Mexico at the Azteca. Listen, I’m not denying the character they showed in that Round of 16 clash. They took down the hosts- at altitude- in a venue that carried generational trauma for the nation. But Mexico had 23 shots to England’s six. Still, they did absorb plenty of pressure playing with ten men in that final half-hour. In retrospect, that final half-hour of play- glorious though it seemed in the moment- may have given Tuchel a false sense of defensive security. They barely scraped past Norway in their quarterfinal clash before setting up the epic semifinal grudge match with Scaloni’s men.
Going 1-0 up never felt so wrong
And for 55 mins: everything seemed to be going all right. The first half was a damp squib (there are probably more highlights in Frank Leboeuf’s hair). The longer it went on; the more I fancied this gritty Argentinean side. But England suddenly burst into life after the break, with Morgan Rogers- who Tuchel apparently played on a ‘hunch’- whipping in a delicious ball for Gordon to finish at the far-post. Cue scenes of raucous jubilation. Cue chants of it’s coming home. Cue Piers Morgan talking about a Tuchel masterclass and asking where Messi is. That goal should have been England’s gateway into the game. It actually sealed their fate, sending Tuchel into a defensive death-spiral.
Southgate in disguise
Let me throw a stat at you. From the moment that England scored till the moment that Argentina scored their winner; the Three Lions only had 12% of the ball! Tuchel decided one goal was enough and shut up shop. He made defensive changes from that point on, taking off Gordon and Rice for the likes of Konsa and O’Reilly. I see the broad rationale: they had a 1-0 lead against the world champs and wanted to hold on for dear life. But they still had 40 mins to play after scoring (which was more like 50 mins when you consider extra-time and the hydration breaks, etc). Why not just go with the tactics that had put you into that situation in the first place? Why not bring on Rashford and Madueke to keep the fullbacks honest?
Inviting disaster
Argentina’s fullbacks have struggled the entire tournament against genuine pace. I firmly believe that Tuchel’s men could have got a 2nd if they just committed to their original gameplan. But Tuchel went to five at the back and had zero thought for an out-ball (Harry Kane was wondering around in midfield like a tourist in New York City). Tuchel essentially rang the dinner bell for an Argentine side who have thrived on herculean comebacks during this tournament. What made Tuchel think he could hold out against this side for that long?
Only a matter of time
The most baffling thing is that Argentina didn’t need to work that hard to make chances against Tuchel’s ‘wall’. McAllister hit the post twice (once before the equalizer and once just before the winner). Pickford made a couple of good saves while Djed Spence made a sensational recovery tackle to stop Simeone from equalizing (imagine them cutting to Beckham after Diego Simeone’s son had scored). I found it a bit worrying that the English side celebrated as if they were at an evangelical church after every single save, block, etc (there was a tinge of desperation in the air).
Defensive numbers didn’t help
It was also strange how Argentina started to dominate England’s penalty area. England didn’t seem to have much of a small-box presence despite the fact that they had everyone behind the ball. Sure, Messi and co were sending in some tasty deliveries. But the number of free headers they gave away was inexcusable for a physically superior side who were holding on for dear life. I understand Tuchel’s decision to batten down the hatches against Mexico. I don’t get the logic in doing that against a vastly superior Argentine side (especially when you still have eleven men on the pitch). It was infuriating to see him bring on Rashford and Toney after Martinez had given Argentina the lead: the damage was done.
Final Words
I personally don’t see how Tuchel keeps his job after this. It’s one thing to be eliminated in a World Cup semifinal; it’s another thing to do so in the same manner as the man you were brought in to replace. Using Dan Burn as your ‘Hail Mary’ attacking option pretty much sums up the entire evening.
