FIFA World Cup 2026: England Manager Thomas Tuchel Demands More From The Three Lions Despite Comeback Win Over Norway In Quarter-Finals

FIFA World Cup 2026: England manager Thomas Tuchel praised his players' fighting spirit after they battled past Norway 2-1 in extra time to reach the FIFA World Cup 2026 semi-finals, but insisted the Three Lions must improve their performances if they are to lift the trophy.

England recovered from going a goal down to book their place in the last four, with Jude Bellingham scoring both goals to overturn Andreas Schjelderup's opener and set up a semi-final clash against defending champions Argentina.

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Bellingham, who was named Player of the Match, defended the team's display after the victory.

"Oh well, whatever... It's difficult out there," Bellingham said, according to Reuters. "It's a tough shift. All the players put in a very tough shift. So my thoughts and appreciation go to the players who were out there who put in a great shift yet again."

Tuchel agreed with his midfielder's assessment of the team's commitment but maintained England have another level to reach.

"Absolutely, no one disputes that," Tuchel said. "I'm impressed with the shift that they put in, the effort, team spirit, the belief, and to overcome adversity and to dig in and find ways to win is on the absolutely highest level. They cannot get enough praise for that."

"But I'm also a football coach, and I think we can play better. In general, I think it was not a high-level game," Tuchel added. "I think we had better games in general. The analysing head of me and the football coach in me still thinks that we can and have to play better football."

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Norway struck first in Miami when Schjelderup's looping cross found the back of the net after Erling Haaland had earlier tested Jordan Pickford. England equalised on the stroke of half-time as Anthony Gordon's pass released Bellingham, who finished calmly past Orjan Nyland.

The second half saw Norway threaten repeatedly, with Pickford producing crucial saves before a Torbjørn Heggem goal was ruled out after VAR penalised Haaland for a push in the build-up. Kristoffer Ajer also rattled the crossbar as England survived sustained pressure to force extra time.

The decisive moment came early in the additional period when Nyland spilled Morgan Rogers' effort into the path of Bellingham, who reacted quickest to score his second goal of the match and his sixth of the tournament.

Bellingham and captain Harry Kane have now combined for 12 of England's 13 goals at the tournament, a statistic Tuchel acknowledged while calling for greater attacking contributions from the rest of the squad.

"We need to get better in attacking to also bring other players into position," Tuchel said, as per Reuters.

"But, of course, they are decisive players. They love the responsibility. They have the quality. They show up in decisive moments, so there's nothing wrong with it. We don't need to be sorry for that, that these two guys play for us and decide the matches for us. It's impressive. They're both top players who found a way to play so efficiently with each other," he said.

Clarifying his post-match reaction, Tuchel stressed that he wants the team to improve and was happy about result of the match.

"No, not at all with the result and not with the team," he said.

"Maybe I need to be more specific. There's no doubt I'm proud, and I'm happy. And I feel so connected to this team because they just do whatever it takes to take the next step. They just refuse to lose. They overcome obstacles and adversity," he said.

"We want to bring out the best in us because the top performance helps you win games. It is just like this, and so the head of mine is not fully satisfied and is not 100% happy with the way we played, and I stand by it," Tuchel concluded.

England will now take on Argentina in Wednesday's semi-final in Atlanta as they continue their quest for a second World Cup title.