“He was absolutely terrible”
Thomas Tuchel faces an unpleasant reunion
June 15, 2026 – 5:35 a.mReading time: 1 min.
The former Bayern coach has anything but fond memories of the referee of England’s opening game against Croatia. The reason: some questionable decisions on his part.
Just at the start of the World Cup, England’s national coach Thomas Tuchel meets a referee with whom he has had some pretty bad experiences. Clément Turpin will lead the “Three Lions” group game against Croatia on Wednesday (10 p.m. CEST/ZDF and MagentaTV).
The Frenchman was already the focus of Tuchel’s criticism a good three years ago. After FC Bayern’s quarter-final exit in the Champions League against Manchester City, the then Munich coach chose clear words.
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“Grade six,” complained Tuchel about Turpin’s performance. The referee’s whistle was “absolutely terrible”. The now 52-year-old continued: “Grade six from the first minute, from the first decision.”
Tuchel heavily criticizes Turpin
At the time, Tuchel was bothered by the fact that, in his view, almost every close decision had gone against Bayern. After the game he added: “I would give him a one out of ten. He was absolutely terrible. That’s hard to believe at this level.”
In the second leg, Turpin gave, among other things, two controversial penalties against Munich. Tuchel also saw a yellow-red card in the final phase. Although he explained at the time that he normally doesn’t comment on referees, he added: “But today it was very noticeable how weak his decision-making was.”
Turpin still enjoys an excellent reputation in the referee scene. The World Cup is the 44-year-old’s sixth major tournament. He also directed the 2021 Europa League final and the 2022 Champions League final.