Gary Neville believes Kobbie Mainoo will ‘want answers’ from Thomas Tuchel after playing zero minutes during England’s World Cup campaign.
The Three Lions were bidding to make their first World Cup final in 60 years, but saw their hopes go up in flames after a dramatic 2-1 semi-final defeat to Argentina.
Tuchel’s side went ahead through Anthony Gordon in the second half, but negative changes saw them punished as Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez scored late to come from behind and book their place in Sunday’s final.
The inquest into England’s tournament has already begun, with Tuchel vowing to stay on until Euro 2028 and defending the changes he made in the second half against Argentina.
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The Germans’ decisions throughout that game and the whole tournament will now be placed under a bigger microscope as the Three Lions look to learn their lessons from another heartbreaking tournament exit.
Mainoo and late replacement Trevoh Chalobah were the only two outfield players not to play a single minute during England’s run to the semi-final.
And Neville admitted he found it hard to comprehend why the Manchester United midfielder was not used against Argentina and throughout the rest of the tournament despite Declan Rice’s struggles with injury and illness.
‘Honestly, we were absolutely dead out on our feet,’ he said on The Overlap with Sky Bet after England’s defeat to Argentina. ‘We couldn’t get out of the box.
‘We literally get pushed back, and then the midfield players sag back onto you because their legs have gone. I think the three of them (in midfield) were all absolutely out on their feet.
‘You look at today, Declan definitely, he’s not been right since day one, has he? That’s a big problem for us. Him not having the energy and the speed to get to the ball. We know what he’s like; he’s a fantastic player.
‘Kobbie Mainoo would be asking a question, wouldn’t he? You’d be wanting answers if you’re Kobbie Mainoo after not coming on at all. Because he can handle the ball a bit as well.’
Meanwhile, the former England defender said Tuchel should have considered bringing Harry Kane off to give his side more of a threat on the break as they looked to hold onto their lead in the closing stages.
‘I honestly think the real bold decision at 1-0 up was probably to take Harry Kane off,’ Neville said.
‘I said it earlier, if you want pace on the counter-attack in central areas, you’ve got to take off Jude Bellingham and Harry, or one of them, and bring on players like Marcus Rashford and Morgan Rogers up front.’
And reviewing England’s tournament as a whole, he added: ‘If we go back to pre-tournament, I think we all said the minute England come up against a team that’s technically going to keep possession from us in the biggest, most pressurised moments, we’re going to struggle.
‘We’ve played Mexico, Norway and Congo DR — Mexico was a tough game, but this is the first team we’ve played at a real high level, and we’ve been found wanting the minute we’ve played a tough team.
‘I think that’s the closest you’re going to get to a World Cup final — 85 minutes, one-nil up against Argentina, with a final within your grasp.’
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