India, June 7 -- Thomas Tuchel was left fuming after England's narrow 1-0 victory against New Zealand in their pre-FIFA World Cup 2026 friendly fixture. The England manager slammed his players for playing 'too much freestyle' football during the match.

Harry Kane scored the solitary goal with a header in first-half stoppage time. Commenting on his team's performance, Tuchel said, "I'm OK with it. I'm not super happy about it. I liked the second half more than the first half. I think we had more bite in the second half, were more aggressive on and off the ball, created a bit more. Some good half-chances and some good penetrations into the box."

"We played more from our positions and that's why we played with more speed. The first half we...