Trump says England’s Tuchel ‘made a mistake’ with Kane in Argentina World Cup defeat

United States President Donald Trump has weighed in on England's 2-1 FIFA World Cup semi-final defeat to Argentina, suggesting that manager Thomas Tuchel made a tactical error by deploying captain Harry Kane in a defensive position after England had secured the lead.

Speaking at a reception in Trump Tower, Trump expressed his bewilderment at the decision. "You have a great player in England who I’ve played golf with. And he is Harry [Kane] who has been fantastic," Trump said. "I think they perhaps made a mistake when they made him a defensive player. What do I know about soccer? They took the lead, and they took their best player and put him on defence. We got to be a little offensive, right. But no, I’m not going to call it, what do I know about coaching? But that was a little unusual."

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You have a great player in England who I’ve played golf with. And he is Harry [Kane] who has been fantastic. I think they perhaps made a mistake when they made him a defensive player. What do I know about soccer? They took the lead, and they took their best player and put him on defence. We got to be a little offensive, right. But no, I’m not going to call it, what do I know about coaching? But that was a little unusual.

England's collapse against Argentina saw the defending champions score twice late in the game to reach the final. Reports indicate that several key England players were dissatisfied with the instructions they received after Anthony Gordon's opening goal. Manager Tuchel had switched to a back five formation and introduced defensive substitutions, a strategy that Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina exploited to secure their comeback victory.

Separately, Trump also addressed FIFA's decision to suspend the automatic one-match ban for U.S. striker Folarin Balogun, who had received a red card. Balogun was initially set to miss the United States' Round of 16 match against Belgium before FIFA suspended the ban for 12 months. Trump alluded to his involvement, stating, "I was forced to call Gianni [Infantino]. I said ‘Gianni, I’d like to make a recommendation. Let the guy in the game!’ No, I didn’t say that. I said I’d like to wage a complaint."

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I was forced to call Gianni [Infantino]. I said ‘Gianni, I’d like to make a recommendation. Let the guy in the game!’ No, I didn’t say that. I said I’d like to wage a complaint.