Fans desert despite wins: Is Tuchel already facing the sack in England? | OneFootball

Four competitive matches, four victories. Thomas Tuchel's record so far as England's national coach is flawless. Nevertheless, criticism of the German is increasing. Therefore, tonight's game against Serbia is already a major test for the former BVB and Bayern coach - where much more is at stake than just the result.

After the second consecutive loss in the European Championship final, Gareth Southgate resigned as coach of the Three Lions in July 2024. The fact that he too had narrowly failed twice to satisfy the title hunger of the 1966 World Cup winners was a significant point. At least as decisive for his departure was the erratic style of play he imposed on a team filled with footballing excellence.

Just winning does not do justice to the pride of the self-proclaimed motherland of football. To rekindle the national team's enthusiasm, the Football Association (FA) even took the unprecedented step of hiring a coach from perennial rival Germany.

And Tuchel, who has enjoyed considerable prestige on the island since his Champions League triumph with Chelsea in 2021, started with great confidence. In March, the 52-year-old unequivocally criticized his predecessor's approach on 'ITV'. "In my eyes, they were more afraid of being eliminated from the tournament [Euro 2024, Ed.] than they had the enthusiasm and hunger to win."

📸 Carl Recine - 2025 Getty Images

He then explained in detail what he meant: "The identity, the clarity, the rhythm, the repetition of game patterns, the freedom of the players, the charisma of the players, the hunger."

Bad for him: These are exactly the points that are now also being criticized after the first games under his leadership.

Against the football minnows Albania (world ranking 68), Latvia (137.) and Andorra (174.), a 3:0 was the best result for the star ensemble led by captain Harry Kane. The matches were often sluggish and the English struggled to their victories.

When they faced a top-20 team for the first time in a test against Senegal in early July, they promptly suffered a painful 1:3 defeat. There were angry whistles from the home crowd in Nottingham at halftime and after the final whistle. And Tuchel also had to admit after the final whistle: "The fans were disappointed. And I don't think you can blame them."

Three months later, the frustration has already turned into resignation. Thousands of the nearly 39,000 spectators did not stay until the final whistle of the uninspired game against Andorra on Friday evening, even though England won 2:0. Kane and Co. took their lap of honor in front of almost empty stands in Birmingham. "It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop," was the damning verdict on the atmosphere from the 'Daily Mail'.

📸 Shaun Botterill - 2025 Getty Images

Looking at the game, the newspaper even used the very nasty word: "Boring, boring England". The BBC even asked: "Has England taken a step back under Tuchel?" The accused naturally saw it differently. "I liked our performance," Tuchel found and certified his team: "It was good and solid against a deep-lying opponent."

For context: Andorra's starting lineup included Pau Babot, who plays for German fifth division team SV Rot-Weiss Walldorf. With all due respect to the passionately fighting landlocked state: Beating a team of mostly semi-professional footballers by only two goals is alarming. Especially since there are only a handful of opportunities left to turn things around before the start of the 2026 World Cup.

So today's match between England and Serbia could already become a final for Tuchel. At least the atmosphere should feel familiarly hostile to the Three Lions. The group leader of the World Cup qualification Group K is expected to face a cauldron in the venerable Rajko Mitic Stadium in Belgrade and a quite capable opponent in the world ranking 32.

📸 ANDREJ ISAKOVIC - AFP or licensors

An English victory is a must anyway. But also the so far understandably used explanation for the game's deficiencies, that the opponent has parked the bus, will not apply. The Serbs are in second place with one game and five points less, which guarantees participation in the playoffs of the qualification. Behind them lurks Albania, against whom goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic just managed to prevent a defeat with a saved penalty in the first leg.

In short: Even Belgrade has realized that England is currently beatable and especially in the offense, coach Dragen Stojkovic can bring danger to any opponent on the field with Luka Jovic, Dusan Vlahovic or Filip Kostic.

If the English performance is not convincing or the game is even lost, it will be uncomfortable for Tuchel. Fueled by critical media reports, the FA might start to ponder. Now is probably the last chance to make an effective change of direction before a major tournament. The DFB released national coach Hansi Flick on September 10, 2023. Thomas Tuchel faces the same fate exactly two years later.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

📸 Carl Recine - 2025 Getty Images