Carragher rips into Tuchel and points finger at one England player

View 2 Images

Jamie Carragher has joined the chorus of criticism over

Thomas Tuchel's

decision-making in the aftermath of

England's World Cup heartbreak against Argentina

. The

Liverpool

legend delivered a damning indictment of the way England exited the tournament and was also quick to blame

Jordan Pickford

for his part in the loss.

The Three Lions

suffered a 2-1 loss at the hands of their South American rivals on Wednesday evening in Atlanta, Georgia, as 60 years of hurt in major competitions go on. After a foul-laden, cagey first half, England broke the deadlock 55 minutes into the clash through

Anthony Gordon

.

Morgan Rogers found the

Barcelona

winger unmarked at the back post as he poked the ball past a floundering

Emiliano Martinez

. While England had looked bright up until that point, the game saw a significant change of momentum when Tuchel made the decision to park the bus and defend the lead for the remainder of the fixture.

With around 20 minutes left to play, the head coach withdrew Gordon in favour of Ezri Konsa, before swapping out

Reece James

and

Declan Rice

for Dan Burn and Nico O'Reilly, respectively. The message was clear, headed down the home stretch: get eleven men behind the ball and defend.

However, those changes came back to bite the Three Lions when

Enzo Fernandez

equalised from range with just five minutes left on the clock, thundering the ball past Pickford. The warning signs had been there, with

Argentina

allowed to fire at leisure, Alexis Mac Allister even hitting the post in the build-up.

Yet Tuchel and England remained content to cling on for dear life, inviting pressure in the process. It's something that didn't sit right with

Carragher

, who made 38 appearances for his nation during his own football career, as he insisted the Germans' substitutions and formation shift were 'the biggest factor in the latest demoralising' defeat.

Writing in his column for

The Telegraph

, Carragher said: "As the game evolved heading towards its climax, it was obvious Tuchel had to act.

were piling on the pressure without creating too many chances.

Content cannot be displayed without consent

"The changes should have focused on personnel. The team’s set-up did not demand such radical attention. Once England went to five at the back, it backfired. The incessant shift towards

Jordan

Pickford’s goal became too much.

"Within a matter of seconds, it was clear Tuchel had made the wrong call. England retreated and camped on the edge of their penalty area, inviting trouble.

"Playing with wing-backs meant Argentina could get more crosses into the penalty area and maintain a momentum which had already started to build without it being anywhere near as dangerous as it subsequently was. Between England taking the lead and Argentina equalising, we were reduced to 12 per cent possession.

"You cannot go into survival mode that early and expect the odds to be in your favour. Going so defensive prematurely had dire consequences"

On Fernandez's goal, he added: "Pickford should still have saved Enzo Fernández’s shot," despite the goalkeeper having a largely impressive game, his reactions and positioning on point moments earlier to deny Nicolas Gonzalez from point-blank range.

Lautaro Martinez ultimately won the clash for Argentina two minutes into stoppage time with a towering header at the back stick, as Argentina players, staff and fans erupted in jubilation, while English hearts were left broken beyond repair.

As a result, England will now take on

France

in a third-place play-off on Saturday, July 18, while Argentina will face

Spain

in the World Cup final on Sunday, July 19.