Thomas Tuchel has come under a lot of criticism following England’s elimination from the World Cup.
The German was brought in to finally get the Three Lions over the line, and he definitely had the squad to do it this time.
However, Tuchel’s tactics in the last 30 minutes against Argentina in the semi-final were a disaster, and the fact that he didn’t even bring Bukayo Saka on was baffling.
Now, a stat has emerged about the Arsenal man that makes Tuchel’s decision seem inexcusable.
Tell us who have been Arsenal’s BEST and WORST player at the World Cup this summer?
Key Bukayo Saka stat exposes Thomas Tuchel’s England mistake
Saka went to the World Cup carrying an injury.
The Englishman played the final few months of Arsenal’s Premier League title-winning season in pain, and he was not fully fit when he joined the England camp.
As a result, Saka started just one of the Three Lions’ first four games at the World Cup, before getting the nod to start against Mexico and Norway.
However, in the semi-final against Argentina, the Arsenal man was an unused substitute, which was really surprising to see.
Then, just a few days later, Saka started against France in the third-place playoff and scored an excellent hat-trick to help England win 6-4.
That showed just how wrong Thomas Tuchel was to leave him on the bench in the semi-final, and one stat will make England fans even angrier at their manager.
In the 356 minutes that Saka played at the World Cup, he scored three and assisted three goals. That is one direct goal contribution every 59.3 minutes, which is an outrageous return.
We’re sure Tuchel must have some regrets over his decision not to play Saka against Argentina.
Answer honestly: Is Bukayo Saka really the best winger in the world right now?
Bukayo Saka joined Sir Geoff Hurst in England’s exclusive World Cup club
Saka wrote his name into England’s history books with his hat-trick against France on Saturday night.
Only three players had scored a hat-trick for the Three Lions in history before the Arsenal man: Sir Geoff Hurst, Gary Lineker and Harry Kane.
Also, Saka became the first English player since Sir Hurst to score a hat-trick in the knockout stages of the World Cup. The latter did it in the final in 1966 – 60 years ago.
That is an extraordinary achievement, one Saka should be proud of, despite not playing the amount of minutes he would’ve liked.
Now, he deserves a long break before another gruelling season at Arsenal.
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