Thomas Tuchel has been back around the Premier League grounds this season and it is worth dwelling on one particular interaction he had with a colleague inside a VIP enclosure, which has doubtless been repeated elsewhere. At which point he might have added: Still. It is two months since England’s 2-1 World Cup semi-final defeat by Argentina in the United States and the emotion tied up in it continues to swirl.
Heartbreak, pain, frustration; everything in this kind of area has touched everybody with an investment in the team. It was a result to leave scars that may never heal. Then things begin to diverge because on one hand there is an anger among a section of the fanbase – those who have struggled to make their peace with a glorious opportunity spurned.
They lay the blame for the surrender of a 1-0 lead with five minutes to go at Tuchel’s door. On the other, there is an appreciation of how Tuchel’s team fought to reach the semi-finals for only the fourth time in England’s history; the personality they showed; the stirring moments along the way, chiefly the last-16 win over Mexico at the Azteca Stadium. It was not nothing to dig deep and find a way past Norway in the quarter-finals after extra-time.
The victory over Croatia in the opening group game was a thriller. When England beat France in the third-place playoff, it added up to a best World Cup finish since 1966. It is difficult to quantify the number of haters.
Just as it is those who have retained a sense of perspective. Both groups co-exist and Tuchel has been affected rather more by the former. He remains bruised by the fallout from the World Cup; bemused, too, because it is not as if England reach the semi-finals as a matter of course.
It is the tension that tracks Tuchel as he prepares for his next cycle in charge, running up to the Euro 2028 finals when England will be co-hosts. On Friday, he names his squad for the opening four Nations League ties, against Spain (home), Czechia (home and away) and Croatia (away). Tuchel wants to look forward.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
