England secured a hard-fought victory against Norway in the World Cup quarter-finals on Saturday, but manager Thomas Tuchel remains critical of the team's performance.
"We made life very difficult for ourselves," Tuchel said. "The result is fantastic but I'm not happy with the performance."
He did praise the players' determination: "I'm impressed with the effort, team spirit and belief to overcome adversity. But I am also a football coach and I think we can play better. We had a lot of momentum swings for both teams. We made life difficult in the way we played, sloppy, a lot of technical mistakes, not fast enough, not repetitive enough."
So what does Tuchel want to see, and if the side isn't playing well, why are they still winning?
How Does Tuchel Want England to Play?
When Tuchel selected his World Cup squad, he had a clear style in mind. Players were chosen for specific roles—Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers competed for the number 10 shirt. Key principles include:
- Dominate possession
- Press aggressively
- Play deliberate passes to entice opposition pressure
- After enticing pressure, accelerate play to find forwards in space
- Against defensive blocks, attack down the flanks using wide triangles and rotations
Tuchel has seen glimpses of this throughout the tournament but remains unsatisfied.
What Tuchel Wanted Against Norway
Tuchel's post-match comments focused on his team's play on the ball. Norway defended in a 4-5-1 shape, while England attacked in a 3-2-5 formation. Marc Guehi, John Stones, and Ezri Konsa formed the back three, with Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson in midfield. Left-back Nico O'Reilly joined the front four to create an overload.
Tuchel's phrase "not repetitive enough" referred to the lack of sustained possession with short passing to draw Norway out, opening space for attackers. In the group stage against Ghana, Tuchel instructed players to play "short, short, short" before a "long switch." England showed this in the first quarter against Norway, drawing defenders to one side before switching play to the far winger.
However, as the game progressed, England's possession dropped from 68% in the first half to 44% in the second, and they struggled to maintain pressure.
Untapped Wide Triangles
Tuchel's system relies on positional rotations in wide triangles, but England failed to execute them effectively. Norway's zonal defending meant players were not tracked, but England's movements were too slow. Similar patterns worked for Iraq and France against Norway, but England couldn't capitalize.
'Fearful' and 'Sloppy'
In one instance, Guehi had the ball at a walking pace instead of playing to free players out wide. He attempted a pass through the middle, losing possession dangerously. This exemplified Tuchel's complaint of sloppiness. Assistant coach Anthony Barry's half-time quotes from the Croatia game echoed similar issues: "We fell back into some fearful patterns."
How Do England Keep Winning?
Despite their struggles, England found a way to win. For the first goal, Norway's disorganized shape after a goal-kick allowed Anderson to carry the ball forward, drawing the right-back and freeing Gordon. This moment of opportunism led to the breakthrough.
England's ability to win despite subpar performances suggests resilience, but Tuchel will demand improvement as they advance.