After back-to-back European Championship final defeats, the expectation is higher than ever before for the Three Lions.
Gone is Gareth Southgate, architect of those two runs to the final as well as the 2018 World Cup semifinal berth, and in his place comes Chelsea’s former Champions League-winning coach, Thomas Tuchel.
The German coach, England’s first, has been brought to Wembley with one job and one job only: Leaving North America with the famous gold trophy on July 19th.
But can he actually get the job done where so many before him have failed, some disastrously so?
Online betting sites seem to think so.
One can bet on sports at Bovada, and the popular betting giant currently lists England as the 11/2 second-favourite to win the World Cup this summer, a price shorter than reigning champions Argentina and back-to-back finalists France.
The only team considered more likely?
Luis de la Fuente’s Spain, the same Spain that beat England in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin two years ago.
So, what’s changed under Tuchel?
And will those changes ultimately end 60 years of hurt this summer?
Let’s take a look.
Southgate Pragmatism Over Philosophy
When Gareth Southgate was appointed as England manager back in 2017, expectations couldn’t have been any lower.
Then, he ushered in a new era, led England to their first World Cup semifinal in 28 years, and their first major tournament final since 1966.
All of those huge games ultimately ended in defeat, but no one can argue that the recently knighted manager brought an incredible amount of progress to a nation languishing in the doldrums.
The problem is that with a little less pragmatism and a little more tactical nous, the Three Lions could have actually beaten Croatia and reached the World Cup final.
They wouldn’t have had to embark upon a penalty shootout against giant Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
They may have even found a way to beat Spain at their own game in Berlin.
All three of those games followed the same maddening script, with England clinging to hope, rather than seizing their destiny.
Against both Croatia and Italy, individual brilliance from Kieran Trippier and Luke Shaw handed the Three Lions dream starts, only for Southgate’s men to retreat into their shell.
As England supporters painfully remember, they were punished for their mistake.
At Euro 2024, nothing had changed. Jude Bellingham’s miraculous overhead kick against Slovakia and Bukayo Saka’s stunning late equaliser against Switzerland twice saved Southgate’s tournament.
Again, individual brilliance was papering over tactical incoherence.
In the final against Spain, Cole Palmer’s late equaliser looked to have bailed Southgate out once more.
The wind was in England’s sails, and for a few short minutes, it looked as though only one team was going to kick on and get the win.
Then, the Three Lions again sat back, and it was La Roja who found the late winner through Mikel Oyarzabal.
That’s Southgate’s legacy in microcosm: transforming England from laughingstock to consistent finalists through defensive organisation and set-piece quality, yet ultimately unable to cross the line because pragmatism can’t manufacture the control that elite knockout football demands.
Tuchel’s Tactical Blueprint
When Thomas Tuchel took over as Chelsea manager back in January 2021, he inherited a Blues squad void of tactical ideas under former boss Frank Lampard.
Within just four months, the Blues had been transformed into a well-drilled team capable of taking down Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering Manchester City as Kai Havertz’s first-half goal secured a stunning upset win and delivered former owner Roman Abramovich with his second Champions League crown.
That’s the kind of transformation the English FA is betting on.
What separates Tuchel from Southgate isn’t just silverware.
It’s philosophy. At PSG, Bayern Munich, and Chelsea, the German teams didn’t wait for a moment of magic—they forced errors through efficient pressure and then pounced quickly.
His preferred back-three system compresses space vertically, making it nearly impossible for opposition attackers to find pockets between lines.
Against Manchester City in the Champions League final, Chelsea won possession in crucial areas of the pitch and then punished Guardiola’s side on the counter.
The risk? Tuchel’s demanding nature occasionally alienated players—his Bayern exit stemmed partly from clashes with senior figures.
We are already seeing that with England.
Jude Bellingham is the jewel in the English crown, but he has featured just six times under Tuchel, fewer than all of his rivals vying for a berth in central midfield.
The England boss has already said that there are “no guarantees” about anyone’s spot in his team, Bellingham included.
From that statement, it is all but clear that Tuchel won’t prioritise any individual over the World Cup-winning team he is attempting to build.
From Reactive To Proactive: England’s Evolution
Picture the contrast: Southgate’s England against Italy at Wembley, sitting progressively deeper after Shaw’s opener, inviting 19 Italian shots while hoping Jordan Pickford’s reflexes would deliver glory.
Now picture Tuchel’s Chelsea at the Bernabéu, pressing Real Madrid’s midfield so aggressively that Modrić and Kroos couldn’t establish rhythm, winning the ball high, and turning defence into attack before Los Blancos could organise.
That’s the philosophical chasm England’s attempting to cross.
For eight years under Southgate, England’s default mode was caution—deep defensive lines, conservative possession in non-threatening areas, reluctance to commit numbers forward unless absolutely necessary.
It worked against weaker nations that couldn’t exploit the initiative that England surrendered.
But against Spain in Berlin, that reactive mentality proved fatal. England couldn’t control possession, couldn’t dictate tempo, couldn’t maintain territorial advantage.
They waited for something to happen, rather than making it happen, and even after their moment came in Palmer’s equaliser, they continued to make the same mistakes and were duly punished late on.
Tuchel’s approach demands the opposite mentality.
His team time their press to perfection, waiting for a slightly stray pass or a bad touch before capitalising.
If the German gaffer has this team as well drilled as his Chelsea team was, the Three Lions may well roar in North America.
If they aren’t, supporters will long for the glory days of Southgate’s pragmatism and deep tournament runs…
Even if glory never actually came.
