World Cup pitchside mics catch Thomas Tuchel hammering England star for playing backwards as they struggled against DR Congo - and his dismissive reaction to his boss

Published: 08:29, 2 July 2026 | Updated: 10:26, 2 July 2026 England manager Thomas Tuchel once again ripped into full-back Djed Spence from the touchline as the Three Lions laboured to victory against DR Congo. The German has repeatedly berated the full-back throughout the tournament, laying into him in viral clips from training and against Ghana in the group stages.  Tuchel's fiery conduct on the touchline has come to the fore throughout the tournament and was highly noticeable in their first match against Croatia.   On Wednesday night, England booked a last-16 clash against Mexico thanks to two late goals from Harry Kane, who is now on five goals for the tournament.  But it had taken repeated shouts from Tuchel, and multiple substitutions, to wake his side up after they went down 1-0 just seven minutes in to Congo winger Brian Cipenga's goal. At one juncture, when Spence took a throw and sent it backwards, pitchside mics caught Tuchel shouting: 'Djed! There [forward] is one on one! Play up front!' The 25-year-old appeared to have a dismissive reaction, shrugging his shoulders and holding out his hands as he looked back half-heartedly and ambled away.  Thomas Tuchel laid into Djed Spence on the touchline again for a throw he didn't like  "Play up front!" 😤Thomas Tuchel was adamant for Djed Spence to play forwards and not backwards pic.twitter.com/h8PHGtIgT9 The Tottenham left-back was filling in on the opposite side of the defence after injuries to Reece James, Jarell Quansah, and Tino Livramento, who was sent home before the tournament.  Spence struggled throughout the match and appeared particularly troubled by the direct dribbling of Cipenga. He and his nearest centre-back, Ezri Konsa, never looked comfortable and England were fortunate to go into the break only 1-0 down after Newcastle forward Yoane Wissa hit the post.  When Spence lost the ball in the final third later in the match, Tuchel immediately called for Eberechi Eze in a move which suggested he had lost patience with Spence.  In mitigation, Spence's preparation for the World Cup was less than ideal as he sustained a serious fratcure to his jaw while playing against Chelsea in May. He has been playing with a face mask and said: 'It's a little bit uncomfortable, but it is what it is. 'It's something I will have to get used to. It'll be three months until it's fully healed, so it's a long time.' England are optimistic that James and Quansah will be available for England's clash against Mexico in the early hours of Monday morning at the Estadio Azteca.  Spence struggled throughout the match and was substituted in the second half  Chelsea captain James, who is England's first-choice right-back, has a hamstring injury. Quansah, who plays for German club Bayer Leverkusen, came in to replace him against Panama but twisted his ankle in that match. 'They are getting close,' Tuchel said of their expected return. 'They will be available very soon.' England's sudden lack of options at right-back has brought into focus the exclusion of Real Madrid's marauding right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold. Tuchel has made it explicit before that he wants the former Liverpool star to improve his defending. Alexander-Arnold has remained an attack-minded defender and as such is not in Tuchel's plans.  But Spence has been the target of Tuchel's frustrations throughout the World Cup. One training trip where he gave him a rollicking went viral. 'Djed, Djed, Djed wake up! Wake up!' Tuchel shouted as Spence hesitated in a passing drill. Spence later told talkSPORT: 'It's normal. He's a great manager. He wants the best from his players. 'He demands high standards and for this tournament, we need to be ready, we need to be on it. Tuchel is a very vocal manager on the touchline and gives fiery commands to his players 'Every session needs to be of the highest quality. That's what he demands. It's good. 'I wouldn't be the only one, he says it to. It's part of the game. 'I think he's a great manager, he's a great guy. Very detailed in what he wants to do. I've got great respect for him. 'It's like what he always says, we're building a family, we've built a brotherhood within the team, everyone has one dream, one brain. 'I think everyone is on the same path. We can do special things. I think he's built that environment with this squad.' Tuchel's explosiveness on the touchline was partially credited for helping the Three Lions to overcome Croatia in their first group match.  Early in the first half of that match, he laid into goalkeeper Jordan Pickford for not following his instructions and held his ground even as the Everton star protested. 'You know what you’re supposed to do, do as I told you,' Tuchel reportedly said as he laid down the law to the experienced stopper, who is known for his own outbursts. Harry Kane rescued England from the brink of World Cup elimination with a superb late brace After equalising in the 75th minute, he produced a moment of brilliance to score a late winner When it looked as though England may be heading out of the World Cup, Kane finally equalised with a header in the 75th minute before wheeling away in celebration with Jude Bellingham Kane gives a rousing speech to his team after dragging England through the difficult game Brian Cipenga stunned England with an early goal to hand DR Congo the lead in Atlanta Tuchel also subjected winger Noni Madueke to a fierce correction within the opening few minutes of his first World Cup match. Not long after Kane had given England the lead via a penalty, he called over the Arsenal winger and commanded him to push higher up the pitch. Tuchel stormed right over to the edge of the pitch and had Madueke stand within a couple of feet as he delivered his instructions. He was conducting himself in such a vehement way that he had to be calmed down. The woes in wide positions have been notable and Wayne Rooney has suggested that Tuchel may regret not calling up Kyle Walker. The 36-year-old plays for Burnley, who got relegated to the Championship last season, and has lost his trademark pace, but has immense experience with 96 caps.  'The minute Tino Livramento got injured, Thomas Tuchel should have been on the phone to Kyle Walker,' Rooney said on the BBC. 'Walker is still more than good enough and more than capable to play in this England team.  England's next match will be in the early hours of Monday morning against Mexico – 7,220ft above sea level. The altitude is a huge advantage for the Mexicans, whose competitive record at the Azteca is 70 wins from 89 competitive games, with 17 draws and just two defeats. A short look at the Mexican media shows how confident they are that they can knock England out.  Mexican media are confident about their chances of beating England in World Cup last-16 One journalist wrote in El Universal: 'As long as Mexico controls possession and forces England to run, especially down the wings with Roberto Alvarado and Julian Quinones, the visitors will gradually tire. 'This is an ideal match for Gilberto Mora, considering that the Three Lions' defence is the weakest aspect of the team. With his intelligence and vision, Mora could deliver through balls to Raul Jimenez, who has Jordan Pickford as his target. 'The fans and the Azteca Stadium will be an added advantage in this match. 'Their support must be palpable so that, as has happened in the past, the ghosts of recent English failures can be brought back to haunt them.' It was also highlighted that Jimenez has enjoyed more success against Pickford than any goalkeeper in his time in England with Wolves and Fulham, scoring six times against the Everton shot-stopper. The threat posed by Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, however, has been highlighted as major issues for the Mexican team to be wary of. How much is David Beckham set to pocket from his World Cup brand deals? Take on our quiz in our newsletter HERE  The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? 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