By Michael ChurchThomas Tuchel was hailed as England’s best chance to win the World Cup but after another failure the German has faced a barrage of criticism in the aftermath of their semifinal defeat by Argentina, though his tactics were not the only reason.What the armchair experts forget is that on Wednesday England were facing the defending champions, still being inspired by the world’s greatest player Lionel Messi.FA CEO Mark Bullingham heralded Tuchel’s appointment as Gareth Southgate’s long-term replacement as an opportunity for England to build on previous near misses.“Our aim is always to win a major tournament and we believe Thomas gives us the best possible chance to do that at the next men’s World Cup,” Bullingham said at Tuchel’s unveiling in October 2024.A serial winner at club level, the former Chelsea boss stepped into the role the following January declaring he would “try to get a second star on our shirt” as the English sought to repeat their World Cup-winning feat from 1966.Rob Dorset has the latest as Thomas Tuchel hits back at his critics and insists he's fully committed to staying on as England manager 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 pic.twitter.com/qx1UrTy0zq— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) July 16, 2026