Tuchel Rues 'Big Mistakes' as England Fall to Spain — Did the Man City Verdict Unsettle His Players?
England suffered a deflating 3-2 defeat to world champions Spain at Wembley on Saturday night — a match ultimately decided by "big mistakes" from some of the finest players in the world. And with Manchester City found guilty of breaking Premier League financial rules just a day earlier, pundits and players alike were left wondering whether the verdict had affected those with City ties.
Three City players — Elliot Anderson, Marc Guehi and Nico O'Reilly — started for England, while Rodri, who moved to Barcelona in the summer after seven years at the Etihad, was in Spain's XI. And three of those four made significant errors at Wembley.
City errors gift Spain two goals
First, Guehi was tackled by Lamine Yamal on the edge of his own box, allowing the Spain winger to drive towards goal and slot in his side's opener. In the second half, Rodri's late challenge on Jude Bellingham led to an England penalty, which Harry Kane struck against the crossbar after slipping. Then O'Reilly had a pass intercepted deep in his own half, which led to Alex Baena's equaliser at 2-2.
Tuchel and Keane weigh in
The pattern was striking enough that pundit Roy Keane was among those wondering whether news of the verdict had unsettled the City contingent. Asked if it was a distraction after his side's loss at Wembley, England boss Thomas Tuchel said: "Not for me but I can imagine for the Manchester City players. For the players who have more time than me, for sure I can imagine they talk about it."
Speaking to ITV Sport, former Manchester United captain Keane said: "In top level football you want to be focused and they certainly would have been affected. To see so many top-class players make so many mistakes - it has certainly affected them."
England captain Kane played down any links between the charges and the errors, telling ITV Sport after the game: "There was a discussion, but at the end of the day when we're with England we kind of put club football to one side and it was no different this week."
A club holding on to innocence
On Friday, sources told BBC Sport that City had been found guilty of breaking the majority of the 115 financial rules they were accused of breaching. After a four-year investigation, the club were accused of a wide range of rule breaches centring around claims they inflated sponsorship revenue and made other "off the books" payments to circumvent financial rules between 2009 and 2018. The charges cover the managerial tenures of Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini, and the first two years under Pep Guardiola, who left the club after 10 seasons at the end of the 2025-26 campaign.
Spain captain Rodri, who made his City debut after the period in question, stressed his belief in the club's innocence in a news conference on Friday. "They always express the confidence that they never did something wrong and we believe in that," he said. "Until the moment they are proved wrong, we will believe the club. They always tell us the confidence they have on the innocence."
A few hours before kick-off at Wembley, City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak also told supporters he was still confident of proving the club's innocence and that the "Premier League process still has a long way to run."
The verdict: what happens next
Sanctions are yet to be announced, but repercussions could include a points deduction, expulsion from the Premier League or a huge fine. BBC Sport understands Premier League clubs are seeking legal advice about potential compensation. City, who won the Premier League and EFL Cup three times and the FA Cup once between 2009 and 2018, will now await the next stage of a process that the BBC's coverage noted could reshape the entire competitive landscape of English football.