Thomas Tuchel recalled with special emotion England’s victory over Mexico in the eight final of the World Cup of the United States, Mexico and Canada, to the point of confessing that after the match he repented of not having taken a very particular memory of the Azteca Stadium.
The English coach spoke about that match in a podcast with Daniel Sturridge and revealed that, after getting the ranking, he thought he should have kicked off and eaten a bit of grass from the historic Mexican stadium.
“I wrote to a friend after the match and said, ‘I regret not having eaten some grass after the match so I can have some of this in my body forever. So important was that moment, so I felt,” Tuchel told The Athletic.
Thomas Tuchel has revealed that he regretted not eating any of the grass from the Azteca Stadium pitch after England’s World Cup win there.More from @JackPittBrooke ??https://t.co/bTzmCIVLB3 pic.twitter.com/Uzc4dCWOxn
The confession reflects the dimension that had that eliminatory for the German coach, who remembered a complicated match against a Mexican team that had the backing of his aficionados in the tribunes.
The eight-final duel was marked by tension and different situations that could change the course of the eliminatory.
England even left with one player less during the match, but Mexico failed to take advantage of the numerical advantage and the set led by Tuchel ended up securing their ranking.
The English team advanced after a game that the coach himself recalled as a intense experience.
“I wrote to a friend after the match and said, ‘I regret not having eaten some grass after the match so I can have some of this in my body forever. So important was that moment, so I felt,” Tuchel recalled.
For the coach, the victory represented one of the most significant moments of his stage in front of England.
After eliminating Mexico, England continued on in the World Cup to reach the semi-finals.
Tuchel's team ended up staying a step from the final after being eliminated by Argentina in a match in which the English began winning and were close to getting the pass to the game for the title.
The defeat provoked criticism of the German coach's approach, but the English Football Federation decided to keep him in charge.
Tuchel continues to lead England and has a contract until 2028, so his project also includes the Euro Cup that will be played in British territory and Ireland.
