Thomas Tuchel's Future with England National Team

Thomas Tuchel will survive this one.

Under fierce scrutiny after England’s World Cup semi-final collapse against Argentina, the 52-year-old head coach retains the backing of the Football Association and is expected to lead the national team into Euro 2028 on home soil.

This is not how it was supposed to look when he took over from Gareth Southgate in November 2024. Tuchel arrived as the man to push England over the line, the tactician who could turn near-misses into silverware after Southgate’s back-to-back European Championship final defeats and a World Cup semi-final exit.

For 70 minutes in Atlanta, that prophecy felt within reach.

Anthony Gordon’s crisp finish had England on course for a first men’s World Cup final since 1966. They were composed, compact, and seemingly in control of an Argentina side struggling to find rhythm. The travelling support could almost see the final in their mind’s eye.

Then the game turned – and so did the mood around Tuchel.

His defence-first substitutions dragged England deeper and deeper. The front foot disappeared. Argentina were invited on, wave after wave, and the semi-final slowly morphed into a siege. The pressure finally told. A late 2-1 defeat, another haunting near-miss, and echoes of past failures crashed back over the national team.

Tuchel’s in-game decisions have since been pored over, his caution framed as the trigger for England’s undoing. The criticism has been sharp. The scrutiny, intense. Yet behind the scenes, the message from the FA is unwavering: he stays.

Contract, conviction and a home Euros

Tuchel’s original contract only ran to the end of this World Cup. In February, the FA doubled down, handing him an extension through to 2028. The plan is clear – he is the man to lead England into a home European Championship.

Speaking after the Argentina defeat, Tuchel did not flinch from that horizon.

“I have a contract until the home Euros and I’m looking forward to that even like now it is difficult to look that far ahead,” he said, the rawness of the loss still evident.

The pain is real, but so is the commitment. The FA’s chief executive Mark Bullingham underlined that in Georgia, even as England’s players tried to process how close they had come.

“It is heartbreaking to be so close,” Bullingham said. “The players and Thomas gave it everything today and the squad, coaches and staff could not have worked harder during the tournament.

“I would like to thank them all – and also give my heartfelt thanks to our wonderful fans here in the USA and at home. We felt your support every step of the way and we are all so disappointed not to go further.”

The disappointment is deep, yet the hierarchy is not reaching for the reset button.

From Atlanta to Kansas City to Miami

England flew back to their Kansas City base after Wednesday’s loss, the journey home from Atlanta heavy with what-ifs. They cannot, though, head for the airport and closure just yet.

One more game remains. One more test of mentality.

A third-place play-off against France awaits in Miami, a week on from England’s quarter-final win over Norway at the Hard Rock Stadium. For players who believed they were 90 minutes from a World Cup final, it is a hard sell.

Tuchel did not try to dress it up.

“A lot of big, big, big football nations are eliminated before the semi-final, so, yeah, it is an achievement,” he said of reaching the last four. “No one wants to hear that at the moment. Me neither, because we demand the most of ourselves. That’s just the nature of being competitive.

“The nature of being so competitive also puts the next game into perspective.

“Nobody of these (England) players, nobody of French players wants to play this match. They want to play in the final. We gave everything to be in the final.

“Everyone plays to win the World Cup, but it is what it is. We have for a day less and to recover, but we will do it professionally, of course.”

The honesty is stark. This is a game neither side wanted. Yet it is also the first step in England’s attempt to reset.

Pain, perspective and the demand to respond

Inside the dressing room after Argentina, Tuchel chose not to deliver a grand speech. He knows there are moments when words cannot touch the hurt.

“I didn’t say a lot (to the players afterwards),” he admitted. “Nothing what you say in the dressing room can take away the pain or the disappointment, of course.

“We all know these moments, so I said let’s take it with respect, let’s digest it first. Accept that we gave everything. That is a big part in a defeat.

“Did we do everything to arrive in this semi-final? Did we give everything? 100 per cent we did, and I think the fans will realise that and do realise that.

“The second of all is to bounce back, to react. That’s what you have to do on highest level in sports. It’s what is demanded and what we will do.”

That is the challenge now. England have fallen at a familiar hurdle, under a very different manager, for very similar reasons. The tactical questions around Tuchel will not go away. Nor will the sense that this squad is close, again, without yet crossing the line.

But the FA has nailed its colours to the mast. Tuchel will lead England into Euro 2028. The next act starts, awkwardly, with a third-place play-off against France in Miami – and the first glimpse of how this team intends to respond.