'Southgate will be watching' - Shrewsbury's Joe Hart lays into Tuchel after England heartbreak

Shrewsbury’s Joe Hart laid into Thomas Tuchel after England’s heartbreaking World Cup semi-final defeat to Argentina.

The former England goalkeeper and BBC Sport pundit criticised the Three Lions boss for showing a lack of belief in his side with a series of defensive substitutions.

Anthony Gordon’s goal had England fans dreaming of a first World Cup final since 1966. However, after taking the lead, Tuchel opted to shore up his defence, replacing Gordon with defender Ezri Konsa before introducing Nico O’Reilly and Dan Burn 10 minutes later.

Former Shrewsbury Town academy graduate Hart drew comparisons with ex-England manager Gareth Southgate following the painful defeat.

He said: “I think Gareth Southgate will be at home watching this game, and he took a lot of criticism when it came to the big moments with England, and when they had the lead, and when they were in big games about shutting up shop.

“I don’t see anything’s changed in that big moment out there.

“For Thomas Tuchel, for as much praise as we’ve given him, for him to change it as soon as he did.

“I think he realised that’s him saying that he didn’t believe in his team, he didn’t think they could land any more punches on Argentina.”

Shrewsbury-born Hart won 75 caps for England between 2008 and 2017. He was included in the squad for the 2010 World Cup, although he did not feature, before becoming England’s first-choice goalkeeper at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, where the Three Lions were eliminated at the group stage.

Despite his criticism of Tuchel, the 39-year-old was keen to praise the commitment shown by England’s players throughout the tournament.

“I think it is important we acknowledge as former players the outstanding effort, the outstanding passion that they have put into this tournament,” Hart added.

“Don’t get it twisted, it was a disappointing end to this game, but those boys have given you absolutely everything that they possibly can.

“The coaching staff, alright it’s on decisions sometimes, but too many times I have gone out of a tournament and looked disappointed, and we have been absolutely hammered. And rightly so, because sometimes you have not performed well.

“But I think it is really important to acknowledge the effort, energy and passion that the team has shown and thrown into representing the badge.”

England will face France in Saturday’s third-place play-off.