One Year to Go: England Suffer Setback Under Tuchel Ahead of World Cup 2026
The 2026 World Cup begins exactly one year from today, but England do not yet look like a side ready to compete on the biggest stage.
Senegal handed Thomas Tuchel his first defeat as England manager, as the Three Lions fell 3–1 at the City Ground.
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Despite taking an early lead through Harry Kane, Ismaïla Sarr equalised on the stroke of half-time. Habib Diarra then gave the visitors the lead on the hour mark, before Cheikh Sabaly added a third late on to cap off a disappointing performance from England.
Although it was only a friendly — and Tuchel made ten changes to the starting XI — the result was met with a chorus of boos at full-time.
"We had a lot of changes, with a lot of players that don't have many caps playing together, because I wanted to see them in exactly this situation," Tuchel told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"It is only the second camp; there's a lot of learning going on for all of us. At the moment, it's tough learning.
"We need to stay calm. This is not what we expect from ourselves, result-wise, and we need to accept the criticism and get better.
"The World Cup is not next week. I am still confident."
Tuchel succeeded Gareth Southgate following last summer's defeat to Spain in the Euro 2024 final. While Southgate led England to two finals and a World Cup semi-final during his eight-year tenure, his side was often criticised for lacking a clear identity — an issue that, so far, Tuchel has yet to resolve.
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"He'll be concerned," former Manchester United captain Roy Keane told ITV.
"We're on the outside looking in, but there's something missing. They don't look like a happy group. Are they all in it together? Is there that proper spirit in the group? I'm not so sure."
England have won all three of their World Cup qualifiers so far — against Albania, Latvia, and Andorra — without conceding a goal, and currently sit top of the group. However, Tuchel's squad selections have raised eyebrows.
Veteran midfielder Jordan Henderson, who missed Euro 2024, has been recalled ahead of younger options such as Adam Wharton. Another controversial inclusion is Kyle Walker, who was caught out of position as Sarr equalised on Tuesday night.
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Despite a successful managerial career spanning 18 years and seven clubs, Tuchel now faces perhaps his toughest challenge yet. If England qualify automatically, they'll have limited time — including the March international break and a brief pre-tournament window — to shape a World Cup-winning squad.
Whether that will be enough remains to be seen.