Tuchel vows to stay England boss, defends tactics
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- Tuchel confirmed he will stay on as England manager through Euro 2028, pointing to a pre-tournament contract extension with the Football Association that retains his position regardless of Wednesday's semifinal exit.
- Tuchel defended his 82nd-minute substitutions — Reece James for Dan Burn and Declan Rice for Nico O'Reilly — saying the late changes were not wrong calls but 'just the nature of the game,' even as England held just 12% possession between Gordon's opener and Argentina's winner.
- Argentina overturned a 55th-minute Anthony Gordon goal with late strikes from Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez (2nd minute of stoppage time), both created by Lionel Messi, to reach the World Cup final against Spain on Sunday.
- Harry Kane criticized the team's response to taking the lead, saying England 'seemed to just try and hold on, which at this level is just not enough' — echoing the pattern of their 2018 World Cup semifinal loss to Croatia and Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy, where they also led and lost.
- Tuchel dismissed the notion of an 'English curse' or DNA issue behind the recurring collapses, insisting the problems are 'solvable on the football field' and that different coaches, players and opponents make direct comparisons unfair.
- England now face France in Saturday's third-place match in Miami Gardens, Florida, while sources told ESPN the FA intends to keep Tuchel in place despite the semifinal exit.
Why it matters: England will enter Euro 2028 qualifying still led by Tuchel, whose contract extension predates the tournament — but a third consecutive major-tournament exit from a winning position (2018 vs Croatia, Euro 2020 vs Italy, now 2026 vs Argentina) means the FA's continued backing assumes Tuchel can fix the same late-game collapse pattern that has now cost England three different coaches.
