The Independent: Scaloni thought Tuchel would play either Saka or Madouike before the second water replenishment.

According to The Independent on July 16 local time, during the World Cup semi-final between Argentina and England, Argentina's head coach Scaloni thought that Tuchel would play either Saka or Madou Kei before the second water break. During halftime, the Argentine players were also told to pay special attention to the characteristics and threats of these two players.

Argentina was shocked by England's reaction after taking the lead in the World Cup semi-final, and also surprised by Tuchel's subsequent series of defensive substitutions. This was because they had specifically prepared for England's potential use of speed to attack them in the second half, both before the match and at halftime.

According to The Independent, Argentina coach Scaloni had been waiting for Tuchel to field either Saka or Madu'eke, or even both simultaneously. Scaloni and his coaching staff were well aware that Argentina's biggest weakness was that when the pace of the game was stretched out, the space behind them would be exposed, making them vulnerable to attacks from speedsters.

Argentine players revealed after the match that this was their biggest fear after Gordon gave England the lead in the 55th minute. However, as the game continued, they gradually realized that England was falling further behind.

Tuchel also admitted that playing France in the World Cup third-place match was not a game that any team really wanted to play.

Scaloni and the coaching staff had been prepared for either Saka or Madou Kei to come on before the second water break. However, they soon discovered that Tuchel planned to bring on a series of defensively oriented players, which further weakened England's ability to play out the ball and virtually eliminated their counter-attacking threat.

Therefore, Scaloni confidently continued to intensify the attack, even boldly substituting left-back Tagliafico with Lautaro, who ultimately scored the winning goal, and finally completed the decisive goal in stoppage time.

After seeing Tuchel's first substitution and its effect—Argentina began to gain more and more possession, playing space, and attacking opportunities—Scaloni immediately abandoned a defensive adjustment he had originally planned.

He realized that against a England team that had lost its speed threat, there was no longer a need to specifically field a pure left-back to defend against their attacks. Therefore, in the 81st minute, he decisively took a gamble, replacing Tagliafico with Lautaro Martinez, while Nico González, who came on as a substitute in the 62nd minute, switched to left-back.

Argentina ultimately completed the comeback by scoring the second goal through Lautaro Martinez, as England continued to retreat and relinquish the initiative.

During the post-match celebrations, England's tactical arrangements became one of the most discussed topics among the Argentine players. They were particularly surprised by Tuchel's quick switch to a five-man defense and by the fact that Saka and Madou Keiche didn't play a single minute throughout the entire match.

In fact, during halftime, the Argentine players were specifically reminded again to pay close attention to the characteristics and threats of these two players.

This arrangement seemed to surprise some England players. Captain Kane even stated that trying to hold onto a 1-0 lead was "not enough at this level of competition."

Center-back Gueye expressed a similar view: "We should have continued to press forward and continue attacking. It felt like after we scored, the team's mentality became - retreat and defend."

However, it is understood that the FA does not believe that England's elimination from this World Cup should be attributed to Tuchel's tactical decisions, and they will continue to support the German coach with the goal of winning the European Championship on home soil in 2028.

FA Chief Executive Mark Briggs has also privately expressed satisfaction with Tuchel's overall coaching performance.

The FA believes that Tuchel is also working to change some long-standing cultural issues within the team. One emerging view is that players almost instinctively retreat after taking the lead, while Tuchel on the sidelines is constantly demanding, even triple, more discipline from the team to maintain that discipline.

Tuchel signed a contract extension with the English Football Association in February this year, and the new contract will last until the end of the 2028 European Championship.