Former Three Lions striker Michael Owen could barely conceal his frustration after England’s hopes of reaching their first World Cup final since 1966 were dashed by reigning champions Argentina, who staged a dramatic late turnaround to secure a 2-1 victory through Lautaro Martinez’s stoppage-time winner.
Owen, who famously scored a stunning solo goal to put England 2-1 ahead against Argentina in their eventual round of 16 defeat on penalties at the 1998 World Cup, described Thursday’s (Jul 16) collapse as a “missed opportunity”, with England leading 1-0 until the closing stages after Anthony Gordon’s second-half opener.
“It’s really, really frustrating. Obviously, I thought England were in control of the game at 1-0 up. Everything was going really well, and I feel we totally and utterly gave the game away… We handed it to them. We gave them everything and all the initiative. Very frustrating,” said Owen, who watched the match on his flight to Singapore, where he is set to grace the “Breakfast with the Legend: Michael Owen” event held at Adventure Cove Waterpark, Resorts World Sentosa.
“Before the goal, we were in control. I thought we were slightly the better team, and if we’d just kept playing the way we were, we would’ve either won 1-0 or maybe even 2-0. I think we only needed to watch Spain the night before to see what you should do when you’re 1-0 up. To show the courage and bravery to keep playing football,” said Owen, who has four World Cup goals to his name (two in 1998 and two in 2002).
With England manager Thomas Tuchel opting to protect the slender lead by introducing defensive trio Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn and Nico O’Reilly in place of goalscorer Gordon, midfielder Declan Rice and full-back Reece James, Owen felt the negative changes ultimately proved to be the nail in England’s coffin.
“It’s the message those substitutions send to the players on the pitch. Bringing on three defenders and taking off a midfielder and an attacking player — what message does that send? To Argentina, to our players, to everybody. It’s such a bad decision.”
“We had quite an easy path to the semi-finals, and so did Argentina. This was the first time we faced a top opponent, and we failed. So even though, on paper, reaching the last four looks like we’ve had another good tournament, it was a missed opportunity,” said Owen, who racked up 40 goals and 89 caps across a decade-long career with the Three Lions.
The 46-year-old offered a frank assessment of Tuchel’s tenure, openly criticising the German’s performance.
Tuchel, who took charge in January 2025, is expected to remain at the helm until Euro 2028, which will be jointly hosted by England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland.
“What we had hoped was that the winning mentality they brought him in for — that ability to get over the line — would make the difference. We’re always getting close, we’ve got some good players, but what is the missing ingredient? We hoped it was the right manager: a positive manager, a brave manager.
“And (Tuchel) said all the right things throughout the tournament. But when it came down to it, if Gareth Southgate had still been in charge and we’d watched that, he wouldn’t be allowed home now. We accused (Southgate) of being a negative manager and all that, and we hoped that changing the manager would bring something different. But it was the same.”
Owen, the first English player to score in four consecutive major tournaments (World Cups 1998 and 2002, and Euro 2000 and 2004), believes that their 60-year wait for a major tournament triumph stems from the “winning mentality” that has been sorely lacking in teams of both the past and present.
“It’s purely mentality. It’s happened in my era too… we’ve always been like this. All we have to do is watch the other semi-final and see what Spain do when they go 1-0 up. That’s bravery. The problem in our country is that, for instance, when we play against Mexico, we celebrate the fact that we’re booting the ball 40 yards up the pitch and blocking shots. We got through on luck in the end.
“How can we celebrate that? I said it straight away after that, and I was the only person in the world who said it. The whole world, even former players in England, were saying it was the best performance they’d ever seen from England. Honestly, I couldn’t sleep at night… I thought I was watching a different game to everybody else because the whole world seemed to think that was acceptable.”
But Owen did add that it was not for lack of ability that England fell at yet another hurdle in the latter stages of a major tournament.
Describing Harry Kane, who with 14 goals is England’s most prolific scorer at the global showpiece, as a brilliant striker, and Jude Bellingham, whose tally of six goals at this World Cup is nothing to be dismissed, as incredible, Owen added that, “There’s nothing wrong with our players. We didn’t get beaten because of a lack of ability last night… It was in the mentality. That’s where they’re stronger than us. They’re not scared to lose. We’re petrified of losing, and that’s our problem. It’s a bit of heartbreak.”
“It starts again for every nation after a World Cup… Let’s hope our players remain fit and healthy. But as I said, it’s the mentality of the players, and that’s what we’ve got to change in our country. It hasn’t just happened in one game or one week; it’s happened for years, and we have the same problems every single time.”
Fans can stand a chance to have a meal with the former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker on Saturday (July 18)’s “Breakfast with the Legend: Michael Owen” event at Adventure Cove Waterpark, where he will be joined by local legend Fandi Ahmad. Tickets are available here.
