Thomas Tuchel has sparked backlash from some England supporters after accusing the Wembley crowd of going quiet during Thursday’s 3-0 win over Wales.
The England boss gave a blunt assessment of the atmosphere inside the national stadium, where the match was practically over as a contest after goals from Ollie Watkins, Morgan Rogers and a record-breaking Bukayo Saka strike inside the opening 20 minutes.
While the match began with an explosion of excitement, the action on the field soon fizzled out — as did much of the noise from the home fans.
Thomas Tuchel criticises England fans at Wembley
Tuchel said in his post-game interview with ITV: “The stadium was silent. We never got any energy back from the fans.”
When asked if he had expected more from the crowd, he replied: “Yes. What more can you give in 20 minutes? We didn’t let them escape. If you hear just Wales fans for half an hour, it’s sad because the team deserved more support today.”
Tuchel later doubled down in a BBC Radio 5 Live interview, saying there had been “a bit too much support for Wales” and insisting his players “deserved big backing” after such a dominant first half.
A photo taken by a fan inside Wembley Stadium after England beat Wales 3-0 on Thursday night
England fans respond to Thomas Tuchel over crowd criticism
Supporters were quick to push back, arguing that the context of the match — a friendly effectively over after 20 minutes — made the manager’s criticism unfair.
One Nottingham Forest fan, Alex, tweeted: “Really poor from Thomas Tuchel to criticise the Wembley crowd. It is a friendly against a poor Wales side, 3-0 and game over after 20 minutes. There would have been lots of first time fans, families, children… no need for it.”
A Fulham supporter wrote: “Tuchel criticising England fans during a Wembley where the game was won in 20 minutes but the second half was flat. Our home atmosphere isn’t fantastic due to consistent games at a stadium where noise doesn’t travel well, but he’s still yet to win fans over and this doesn’t help.”
A Chelsea fan was even more direct: “I don’t think Tuchel understands just how little the fans give a s*** about internationals that aren’t a major tournament. He’s not going to do himself any favours with that statement.”
Another fan said: “Tuchel really decided to have a pop at England fans after Wembley went flat – even though the game was basically wrapped up inside 20 minutes, with mostly families out there tonight. He still hasn’t fully won the fans over, and having a dig at the atmosphere isn’t going to do him any favours…”
One supporter aimed the blame back at the dugout and pointed out that some of England’s recent games had been even less exciting. They argued: “If you delivered some good performances, then maybe we’d get behind you and the team! I’m sick and tired of him always blaming the fans. It’s not our fault you could only lead us to a 1-0 win over Andorra!”
What else did Thomas Tuchel say after England beat Wales?
Despite his criticism of the fans, Tuchel was broadly pleased with the performance of his team. He praised his players for starting fast and said they were “nearly playing like a club team” because of how well they’ve absorbed his ideas in a short time.
He also admitted that England — who have a 12.5% probability of winning the World Cup based on the latest betting odds — “should have scored more” in the first half and suggested that wholesale substitutions disrupted the rhythm after the break. However, he described it as “another step in the right direction” ahead of Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier against Latvia.
