Michael Owen, one of the great historical figures of the England team, launched harsh criticism against the national team after their World Cup elimination at the hands of Argentina. The former soccer player assured that the overconfidence was born after the suffered 2-3 victory against the Mexican team at the Azteca Stadium, a result that, in his opinion, completely blinded both the fans and the British media. "It was the worst thing that could have happened to England. It was not the model to win a World Cup, but the model to lose it," Owen stated in his column for the Daily Mail newspaper. The former Liverpool and Real Madrid player regretted the excessive euphoria that was experienced in the United Kingdom after successfully emerging from Mexico City.

"In the hours after the victory at Azteca, I warned of a dangerous excessive reaction among former players and fans; there was a complete misunderstanding of what bravery in football really means. It was described as our best performance in history and some called me a pessimist for pointing out that it was not at all," he wrote forcefully. Fire against Thomas Tuchel

Owen held nothing back and directed his batteries directly to the bench, calling into question the approach and reading of the game by the German technical director, Thomas Tuchel, especially in the most critical moments of the tournament.

"This is where Thomas Tuchel comes into the picture... but he was wrong. He didn't help the team when it needed it more than ever. His substitutions and tactical changes fostered negativity and doubts. They were one of the worst moves I've ever seen. They brought him in to change this, but instead of being the solution he became part of the problem," he concluded.