Harry Kane before the confrontation with Argentina. We play to win the World Cup… not to entertain Tuchel

England captain and top scorer Harry Kane spoke about the dispute between coach Thomas Tuchel and midfielder Jude Bellingham after the 2:1 victory over Norway in the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup.

Kane has expressed his understanding of his coach’s stance, even if it doesn’t go down well with Bellingham. After the Three Lions team showed cohesion since the start of the tournament, its performance witnessed some fluctuations after a difficult semi-final qualifier against Norway.

The concern stems from Tuchel’s criticism of the team’s performance, as he admitted his team “got lucky”, describing the performance as “characterised by chaos and overcaution and lacking the necessary speed and efficiency”.

On the other hand, Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham, who scored both goals in the game, replied: “Perhaps the coach does not realize the difficulty of playing in such circumstances in front of players of the caliber of Holland, Odegor, Noosa and Sorlot.”

Bellingham added: “Facing them is not easy at all. We have strived to create a positive atmosphere and must continue to do so. You won’t win every game by passing the ball a thousand times. Sometimes you have to know how to get the win, even when the road is not paved, and that’s what we did tonight.”

Over the past 24 hours, this dispute has been the focus of discussion in the British media, during… At the meeting Harry Kane was asked about the issue on Sunday.

The striker of “Bayern Munich” did not try to inflame the controversy, but indicated that he understands the coach’s point of view, saying: “When Thomas Tuchel watches us in training and sees our harmony and potential, especially given the elements we have, our attacking ability and our individual and technical skills, it’s only natural that he looks at his best.”

Kane stressed the need to focus ahead of the upcoming semi-final against defending champions Argentina at 9pm on Wednesday, saying: “We will meet one of the best teams in the world. On the positive side, we reached the semi-finals feeling like we had room to grow. I don’t think we should worry too much. We are performing at a very good level.”

The England captain concluded by stressing that England fans, sixty years after their only World Cup, will be happy with the crown, even if it comes at the expense of an aesthetic game against Argentina.