England exit creates West Ham flashbacks: Tuchel repeats Nuno error

En route to relegation, West Ham United dropped a staggering 20 points from winning positions during the 2025/26 Premier League campaign. Only Newcastle, with 25, dropped more.

There were no points on offer for Thomas Tuchel’s England on Wednesday night. Just the small matter of a first World Cup final since the glory days of Martin Peters, Geoff Hurst and Bobby Moore.

If you were Thomas Tuchel, what would you have done DIFFERENTLY?

There were certainly shades of Nuno’s West Ham v Argentina… 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🇦🇷

But the manner in which England tied their own shoelaces together and stumbled headfirst out of the competition brought to mind, for instance, when West Ham floundered to a 2-2 draw at Bournemouth in November. Or, perhaps, the 1-1 draw at Brighton a couple of weeks later; Georginio Rutter scrambling a controversial, stoppage-time equaliser.

The time West Ham turned leads into a losses against Nottingham Forest and Chelsea.

Thomas Tuchel emulates Nuno Espirito as England beat West Ham United

Hammers legend Tony Gale, from his vantage point in the commentary booth, knew what was coming long before it did.

Then again, you didn’t need the gift of clairvoyance to realise that taking off Luis Guilherme and Callum Wilson, for Kyle Walker-Peters and Tomas Soucek, would hand the initiative to Bournemouth.

Or, perhaps, that introducing Max Kilman for the high-pressing Pablo Felipe would backfire at Stamford Bridge.

“So many defenders, so deep as well. They make them pay, Bournemouth,” Gale said on a day when only an ‘incredible’ Alphonse Areola saved West Ham from defeat in a game they lead 2-0 at half-time.

“They can’t go any deeper, West Ham. They will be on the goal line!”

At least Nuno acknowledged his Max Kilman-shaped ‘mistake’ following the most self-inflicted of 3-2 losses at Chelsea. That Tuchel refused to engage in any introspection of his own – the German a pitying parody of Gareth Southgate’s worst instincts – had the blood boiling almost as much as England completing a mere two passes in an 18-minute stretch in Atlanta.

Hammers fans hit out at Tuchel following Argentina disaster

“Thought it was Nuno managing,” one of Hammers News’ TalkingPoint users said as a quickfire double from Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez set up a final between Argentina and Spain. “Go ahead then sit back. Seen it all last season!

“Had visions of West Ham,” another agrees. “Get a lead then go defensive with a poor defence. Should have stayed attack-minded in my honest opinion.”

What would you say is West Ham’s biggest transfer REGRET? 😫

David Moyes snubbed Julian Alvarez for £14m…

“The same tactic West Ham got relegated with. Never works, fans hate it, players hate it. But yet, it’s still being used, year after year after year.”

“It reminded me of West Ham under Moyes last night,” one writes, harking back to the frustrations that arose during the Scot’s final few months in charge. “As soon as he took Gordon off and put Konsa on, I -and all West Ham fans – knew what was coming.

“I turned it off before I started having flashbacks and nightmares.”

You won’t need us to tell you what happened thereafter. As you say, you’ve seen it all before.

It is easy to say in hindsight, as they say. But, on this occasion, hindsight wasn’t needed. It seems that everyone knew taking off Anthony Gordon – England’s best presser and best channel-runner – for an extra centre-back in Ezri Konsa was bound to backfire.

Well, everyone but the man who really mattered, that is.

Worse was to come. Three minutes before Enzo Fernandez’s piledriver equaliser, Declan Rice and Reece James were sacrificed for Dan Burn and Nico O’Reilly.

If you will indulge us for a moment, why not introduce, say, Marcus Rashford or Ollie Watkins to stretch the play and provide an outlet on the counter? Why not give Kobbie Mainoo his first minutes of the tournament; the Man United man an expert of retaining possession under pressure and playing his way out of trouble?

Why not do anything but try and hang on desperately for half an hour against the greatest creative mind the game has ever seen in the ageless Messi?

Similar autopsies, of course, would have dominated many a post-match debrief at West Ham last season.

“We got smashed last 30 minutes. Could and should have been 1-4 or 1-5 with their chances. They stepped up through the gears and we couldn’t match them with eleven behind the ball.”