Thomas Tuchel explains what went wrong against Spain despite seeing plenty of positives in the performance.
The England head coach felt his side showed courage, identity and attacking quality against the world and European champions, but admitted individual mistakes and a failure to turn promising situations into clear-cut chances proved costly.
Tuchel highlighted England’s problems in the deep build-up, saying they became their own biggest danger around the box when errors on the ball allowed Spain to punish them. He was more encouraged by the team’s organised defending, pressing and ability to push Spain back during England’s strongest spells.
England continued to attack while ahead and Tuchel believed his players had Spain under serious pressure before the momentum shifted late in the match. Despite conceding three goals, he insisted the defensive structure itself was not yet a concern.
The England manager now wants his side to reproduce the same style while cutting out the technical mistakes that hurt them against elite opposition.
