England's Unfathomable Tactics Against Messi in World Cup Semi-Final
Gary Lineker branded England’s approach to Lionel Messi and Argentina “unfathomable” after Thomas Tuchel’s side surrendered a 1-0 lead and crashed out of the World Cup in Atlanta.
England were 15 minutes from a World Cup final. They left with a 2-1 defeat, undone by two late moments of Messi genius and a tactical retreat that invited the defending champions to do what they do best: suffer, then strike.
England retreat, Argentina rise
Anthony Gordon’s opener had tilted the semi-final England’s way and, briefly, it felt like the night might belong to Tuchel. His side were compact, aggressive, and carrying a threat on the break.
Then the changes came.
Tuchel rolled on three defenders in the second half, dropping his team ever deeper and effectively handing Messi the keys to the final third. England’s line sank, their out-ball vanished, and Argentina’s belief grew with every touch of their captain.
They rattled the woodwork twice as the pressure mounted. England clung on, but the pattern was set: blue and white shirts camped around the box, Messi orchestrating, England defending in numbers but not in control.
The resistance finally broke when Enzo Fernandez stepped onto a loose ball 25 yards out and drilled it home, a clean, rising strike that dragged Argentina level and shifted the entire mood of the stadium.
From there, it felt inevitable.
Messi, now operating with freedom on the right, kept finding pockets of space. England’s back five shuffled but never engaged, content to hold their line as the greatest playmaker of his generation picked his passes.
Deep into stoppage time, the punishment arrived. Messi shaped, paused, then sent a precise cross into the area. Lautaro Martinez met it, and England’s World Cup dream was gone in a heartbeat.
Lineker: “Just put someone on him”
Watching it unfold, Gary Lineker could not believe what he was seeing.
“I found it absolutely unfathomable that, if your tactic is to sit everyone deep, you do that against the greatest player ever to play football,” he said on The Rest Is Football, pointing directly at England’s decision to give Messi room to operate.
Lineker highlighted Messi’s ever-growing legacy on this stage: most goals in the World Cup, most assists in the World Cup, and still dictating the biggest games.
“And he moves to the right, yeah, and you play a back five, and you still don’t go and get tight to him.
“Just put someone on him. He had so much space. He just whipped ball after ball after ball into the box.”
England did neither: they didn’t press him high, and they didn’t man-mark him low. They simply dropped off and hoped the space would close itself. It didn’t.
Tuchel under fire – but still backed
Tuchel, contracted through Euro 2028, is understood to retain the support of the Football Association. This was his first World Cup in charge, and he had guided England to the last four.
The manner of this defeat, though, has opened him up to fierce criticism.
Micah Richards, speaking in the aftermath, did not spare the England manager.
“Today he got it wrong,” Richards said. “And he has to accept that. They were too deep. As soon as we scored that goal, we had no outlet.”
That was the story of the second half: a team that stopped attacking and a superstar who never stopped probing. Argentina, fuelled by that familiar tournament resilience, rode out the early blow and then suffocated England with territory and pressure until the dam burst.
Spain await Argentina in Sunday’s final. Messi goes again, chasing yet another chapter. England go home knowing they had the lead, the platform, and the players – and chose to back off the one man you can never afford to leave alone.
