France vs England: Why the third-place World Cup qualifier was big for Three Lions coach Thomas Tuchel | Football news

England are in the middle of three games against three of the top teams in world football. That never happened.

Far from being a dead rubber, Saturday’s third-place play-off against France has far-reaching implications for how this World Cup will be remembered – and almost certainly for Thomas Tuchel’s future.

Let’s be clear: The Football Association (FA) is still fully behind the England manager, and Tuchel said after the semi-final defeat to Argentina that he was “100%” committed to the role, until the European Championship in 2028.

But I have never seen so much criticism of any England manager when the team, on paper, had a successful World Cup.

Remember, Tuchel’s team has gone all the way to the semi-finals of a major tournament and only lost to a team that contained the greatest of all, Lionel Messi. A team that has won its last 15 outings and claimed the last three international competitions it has played in (two Copa Americas and one World Cup).

Despite that, Tuchel was insulted. He was heavily criticized throughout the quarter, including by me, for switching to five back – then bringing on a sixth defender in Nico O’Reilly – to try to protect a slim 1-0 lead in Atlanta.

All this meant that England did not have the ball from outside and were not resting on Messi’s attack.

Adding insult to injury, Tuchel went on to say he had “no regrets” about the decisions he made and thought the problem on the night was the England players’ systemic inability to keep the ball, rather than any failure in his tactics. He repeated that feeling in his press conference before the France game.

It was extremely good, as you would expect from any top coach based on a corner and no room for doubt.

But it has become clear to me that it is not just certain sections of the media and the England support that Tuchel has temporarily alienated. A number of players in Tuchel’s squad – some of them senior – think the coach has made a mistake.

There is frustration with their jobs for sure. The players themselves knew they were too deep and failed to keep the ball effectively 17 minutes after the goal and before Tuchel made his debut.

But there is some wonder about the tactical decisions that led England to beat what one source said to me was “their best chance ever” to reach the World Cup final.

England could achieve their best World Cup finish since 1966

So what? The third-place playoff game in Miami on Saturday that nobody cares about? In fact – it’s not.

France is the number 1 ranked team in world football. They are the favorites to win this tournament here in the US and were the most dominant team until they lost badly to Spain.

They have some of the best players in the world right now in Kylian Mbappe, Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembele. If England are not at their best this time, they will not only be beaten but disappointed. Where will Tuchel be if that happens?

If you look carefully, this is a great opportunity for Tuchel and England to make a lasting statement, one last big skull that can help reduce the controversy flying around after the Atlanta semi-final.

Beating France would mean England’s best World Cup success since 1966 and could jump to third in the FIFA rankings. But on top of that, it would be a huge statement and another demonstration of this squad’s incredible resilience and character after a hugely disappointing exit from the tournament.

We have seen it in this World Cup. An epic backs-to-the-wall win at the cacophonous Azteca Stadium with England down to 10 men and fighting for their tournament lives. Many argue that it was the greatest work England had ever done abroad.

We saw it in the hot box of Miami in the quarter-final, where despite a less than smooth performance and a temperature that felt like 44C, the team won again after 120 minutes.

‘The France game is important for Tuchel’s future’

Can they play again outside of France? Importantly, can Tuchel encourage them to do just that after he criticized their football community and “DNA”?

If not, there will be new questions in the halls of power at Wembley. Tuchel was hired as a serial winner, a knockout specialist, a man who had the nous to finally put a second star on his shirt.

Back-to-back defeats for the two teams ranked first and third in the world won’t reassure anyone that they can do it in the biggest games.

Then comes Spain at Wembley in September. It’s the third game of this fun but torturous trio. Depending on what happens in Miami on Saturday night against France, a replay of the Euro 2024 final could be a break for Tuchel.

That’s why this game with France is far from being a meaningless curtain call. It is very important for Tuchel’s future and the direction of this England team.

Twice before, in 1990 and 2018, England lost in the bronze medal match. They will be hoping to avoid the hat-trick that worries them.