Tuchel's game management was a joke

Tactically it is hard to defend because the logic just was not there. England had enough on the pitch to make Argentina think twice, but instead the team were asked to drop off, protect space and basically wait to be attacked. That is not how you close a game against a side that has been threatening all tournament, and once the momentum shifted you could see the panic spread. Honestly it turned into one of those nights where every decision seemed to make things worse and you start asking whether the manager believed in the plan at all or just hoped the game would somehow finish itself and bloody hell it was infuriating to watch because there was still time to do something about it and instead it felt like watching the handbrake get pulled in real time
 
The officials will get a pass because everyone is focused on the manager but that whole second half was a joke from the whistle direction as well, every little thing seemed to go one way and it made the atmosphere even more toxic, and when a game is already tense the ref has to have a bit of control and not let it drift into chaos because then every tackle becomes a drama and every stoppage turns into another chance for Argentina to settle while England are chasing shadows, it felt like the match just kept getting more and more broken up and nobody in charge was really on top of it and that only made Tuchel's decision to sit back look even more ridiculous because once you hand over territory and momentum and then let the game become stop start you are basically begging for trouble and that is exactly what happened
 
i dont even think the players suddenly forgot how to play its more that tuchel seemed to tell them to stop doing the things that were working and once that happens you are basically inviting pressure on yourself and argentina are far too good to not take advantage of that, it was so obvious from the stands and on the screen that the whole shape had gone backwards and nobody looked like they knew who was supposed to carry the ball anymore
 
I think the frustrating part is that this did not need to become a referendum on whether Tuchel is good or bad because the basic decision was just poor in the moment, England had phases where they were on the front foot and then suddenly the shape got deeper and safer and it made no sense to me at all, and once you do that against Argentina you are asking for exactly the kind of pressure they love to build, then the confidence starts draining out of your own side and every pass becomes a clearance, every clearance becomes another attack and before you know it the whole thing has gone from manageable to chaotic, and yeah people will talk about the manager because he made the call and he has to own it, it just felt like one of those nights where the fear of losing completely overtook the idea of trying to win and that is what makes everyone so angry because it was self inflicted and unnecessary and now everyone is left shouting at the screen and wondering how it got that bad
 
The measured point is that England probably needed a bit more composure and a bit less conservatism once the lead was there, because the best way to protect yourself against a strong opponent is often to keep the ball and force them to work without it. But the tangent is that this is exactly why people get fed up with elite managers when they overcomplicate simple situations and turn a decent position into a hostage situation, and then all the pundits start talking about bravery and structure and whatever while the fans are just sat there thinking why did you stop doing the thing that was actually working, it is maddening and it always ends the same way with a manager acting shocked that sitting deep against quality opposition leads to trouble
 
was in the pub watching it and you could feel the mood change the second the line dropped because everyone around me just started looking at each other like surely not surely he hasnt actually told them to do this, and then every attack from argentina felt longer and more dangerous and the lads in the pub were getting louder and louder, one bloke near the bar kept saying just keep the ball just keep the ball and by the end he was basically shouting at the telly like it was going to answer him, proper miserable night and i was half expecting someone to throw a pint when the next wave came in because it had that sort of energy about it
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top