Thomas Tuchel has openly admitted that England’s own ball‑play was the main factor that turned them into a danger to themselves during the 3‑2 loss to Spain. The Three Lions, who entered the match with high expectations after a flawless defensive record throughout the World Cup qualifying phase, were caught out by a series of costly errors that allowed the reigning world and European champions to score through Lamine Yamal, Alex Baena and Mikel Oyarzabal.
In the aftermath of the defeat, Tuchel reflected on the broader defensive trends of his side. While England had managed to keep a clean sheet in every qualifier, the recent string of fixtures against top‑tier opposition – Argentina, France and now Spain – has seen them concede nine goals in three games. Despite this worrying statistic, Tuchel was quick to point out that the problem does not lie in the team’s structural or collective defending.
Instead, he believes the shortcomings stem from individual mistakes made while the team is in possession, especially during the deep‑building phases of play. "It’s not a concern yet," Tuchel said ahead of England’s next Nations League encounter with the Czech Republic on Tuesday. "In terms of organised defending, block defending and active defending, we were at a higher level than in many other matches. If you isolate the defensive structure and the unit work, I was quite happy – it was a step ahead." He went on to explain that the real issue was the loss of composure when the ball was at their feet.
"We suffered clearly from individual mistakes when we had the ball, especially in the deep build‑up, so that is of course something we cannot repeat. Not at this level. Strangely enough, when we had the ball, we were the biggest danger to ourselves around the box because we just had too many individual mistakes. Purely in defending, I have no concerns and I trust that we can do it," the German coach asserted.
The manager’s comments arrived amid a wave of criticism over his tactical choices in the World Cup semi‑final against Argentina, where he opted for a defensive stance after taking a one‑goal lead rather than pressing for a second. After that match, Tuchel famously suggested that ball possession might not be ingrained in the English footballing DNA the way it is in Spanish or South American cultures.
He said, "I think ball possession plays a crucial role; it's maybe not in our DNA like it is in Spanish DNA or in Argentinian‑Brazilian DNA, to take the ball and control the game with the ball." Nevertheless, Tuchel insisted that England’s identity was still evident in the Spain game. "There was a lot of discussion about this before the Spain game," he noted. "We showed our style and we showed our courage. The players showed an identity and they showed it throughout the 90 minutes.
We gave them a lot of problems. We caused ourselves some problems with individual mistakes.
Mistakes can sometimes happen. They shouldn't, but they did happen." He also highlighted the positive moments, reminding fans that England held the world and European champions on the brink of defeat. "We had the world and European champions on the edge of a defeat. In the decisive moments we played our best football.
We kept attacking when we were a goal ahead. We were even more dominant and more of a threat," Tuchel said. The manager acknowledged that a loss of momentum towards the end of the match was partly self‑inflicted, but he remained optimistic about the overall performance and the lessons to be learned.
"We were a little bit self‑responsible for the break in momentum towards the end of the match. But overall we have a lot of positives to take away," he concluded. Looking ahead, England will face the Czech Republic away on Tuesday, September 29, at 7.45pm, followed by a clash with Croatia on October 3 and a home fixture against the Czechs again on October 6. Tuchel’s focus will be on tightening the team's ball retention, reducing individual errors in the final third, and ensuring that the defensive structure he praises remains solid under pressure.
Fans can follow the upcoming matches via Sky Sports’ live match blog and app, and a Q&A session with Sky Sports News England reporter Rob Dorsett is scheduled for Tuesday morning, offering supporters a chance to submit their questions about the Three Lions’ future direction. In summary, while England’s defensive framework appears sound, Tuchel stresses that the squad must improve its composure and decision‑making when in possession, especially during deep‑build phases, to avoid becoming its own biggest threat on the pitch.