Matthäus: Tuchel has lost his gamble again; he's made the same mistake before.

According to Bild, German football legend Lothar Matthäus harshly criticized Thomas Tuchel's tactical adjustments after England's 1-2 defeat to Argentina in the World Cup semi-final. He believes Tuchel's premature tactical changes and substitution of Declan Rice sent the wrong signal to the opponent, ultimately leading to the team's loss.

England took the lead in the match thanks to a goal from Anthony Gordon, but were ultimately defeated by Argentina with two late goals, missing out on the final. This incident reminded Matthäus of Bayern Munich's defeat to Manchester United in the 1999 Champions League final.

Matthäus said: "In this situation, you can't take your 'quarterback' off the field. Thomas Tuchel's tactical instructions ruined the game. It reminds me of the 1999 Champions League final. We were leading Manchester United 1-0 when I was substituted in the 80th minute. Then the game changed, and the opponent scored two goals in the final moments to come back and win the game."

In this match, England took the lead in the 55th minute through Anthony Gordon and controlled the tempo of the game for a period. However, Tuchel substituted Gordon with Konsa in the 72nd minute, Dan Burn for Reece James in the 82nd minute, and Nico O'Reilly for Declan Rice.

Matthäus said, "It's the same situation we were in back then. I was exhausted in the final, but I could have persevered, and I had to grit my teeth and keep going. Whether to make substitutions is the manager's decision. If Hitzfeld had told me to 'stay on the pitch,' I would have stayed. Whether then or now, it's a fatal signal that makes the opponent stronger again. Before that, Argentina had almost no space to organize and combine, they were far from the England goal, and they didn't get any shots on goal."

After England adjusted their formation, Argentina gradually took control of the game. Enzo Fernandez equalized with a long-range shot in the 85th minute, and Lautaro Martinez headed in a goal in stoppage time to complete the comeback. Matthäus analyzed the situation, saying, "Tuchel then switched to a five-man defense, which was practically a seven-man defense. Argentina suddenly gained space and created chances one after another. If it weren't for Pickford's outstanding performance, the final score might have been 1-4 or 1-5. Despite England fielding a seven-man defense, they failed to shut down the flanks, focusing only on protecting the center. Messi, who had previously frequently appeared in the center, completely shifted to the right wing and was involved in creating two goals from there. England played too passively and could no longer relieve defensive pressure through counter-attacks."

Regarding Rice's substitution, Matthäus emphasized: "Rice is very important to the team's overall structure. Tuchel's substitution completely changed the overall structure of the game and also showed Argentina that he only wants to defend. Since the original tactics were effective, why change them? I have great respect for Thomas Tuchel, but he gambled and lost. This is not the first time; he has done this before."

When discussing Tuchel's coaching style, Matthäus also compared him to former German national team coach Julian Nagelsmann.

Matthäus stated, "Putting Kimmich at right-back meant he was giving up a leader who plays a crucial strategic role in midfield, which is one of the reasons Germany was eliminated so early. Tuchel, on the other hand, replaced his midfield maestro Reis. You can't do that unless the player is injured. That's just how those self-righteous coaches are; they always want to do something different."

In response to criticism, Tuchel previously stated, "I didn't believe that bringing on attacking players would help the team."

In addition, several English football legends have also questioned Tuchel's tactics.

Wayne Rooney stated, "When you allow Messi and Argentina to keep charging at you, you're essentially asking for trouble."

Gary Lineker said, "It's simply incomprehensible that they would drop their defense so deep against the best players in the world. I even suspect that Tuchel might be a German spy."

Thomas Müller commented on social media: "I can't believe or understand how England handled the game after taking the lead. I simply can't understand why they let the Argentine players cross from their ideal positions time and time again."