Michael Owen Desak Thomas Tuchel Mainkan Bukayo Saka Kontra Argentina

Mantan penyerang tim nasional Inggris Michael Owen mendesak pelatih Thomas Tuchel untuk memasang Bukayo Saka sejak menit awal dalam pertandingan semifinal Piala Dunia 2026 melawan Argentina di Stadion Mercedes-Benz, Atlanta, Rabu.

Owen menilai kecepatan dan kreativitas Saka sangat dibutuhkan untuk membongkar lini pertahanan Argentina yang dinilai rapuh saat menghadapi serangan dari sektor sayap.

Saka baru tampil sebagai starter dalam dua dari enam laga Inggris sejauh ini karena sempat mengalami cedera, sementara posisinya di sayap kanan kerap digantikan oleh pemain Chelsea, Noni Madueke.

"Obviously, Saka is coming back from an injury and just building his way back into the tournament, but my inkling would be that Saka would start in this one. It feels too big a game to not have him starting." ujar Michael Owen, Mantan Penyerang Timnas Inggris.

Owen menilai kontribusi para pemain sayap Inggris seperti Madueke, Marcus Rashford, dan Anthony Gordon belum maksimal sepanjang turnamen, sehingga rotasi yang tepat sangat diperlukan pada fase krusial ini.

"I think you're right, considering that. I thought going into this World Cup, those three attacking players in behind [Harry] Kane, I thought that was our strength. And it's not really worked out like that.

Kane and [Jude] Bellingham have been our strength, I guess. Whether it's Rashford or Gordon or Madueke or Saka, they've been predominantly the ones that have played. They've done OK, but nothing more than OK.

And they're in positions where they can come on and they can be fresh. They'll get rotated all the time. They should really be on the score sheet and certainly be getting plenty of assists out of them.

But it's not quite been like that yet. But still two games to go and two of the biggest games. No one will remember the group stages if one of them goes and scores a couple of goals in the World Cup final." kata Michael Owen, Mantan Penyerang Timnas Inggris.

Owen juga menyayangkan keputusan Tuchel yang tidak membawa pemain kreatif lain seperti Phil Foden dan Cole Palmer untuk memberikan opsi rotasi yang lebih kaya di lini serang.

"Absolutely. I was of the opinion, and still am, that throughout the tournament we should really have been rotating those players. I know they have chopped and changed a little bit, but I thought there'd be a lot more rotation in those areas.

Certainly, I suppose before the squad was even picked, I was looking at some other players that could be there – the Phil Fodens, the Cole Palmers of this world. We put a load of our great players in those positions, put them into the squad, then we've got plenty of rotation, plenty of fresh legs, plenty of new ideas throughout the tournament. Those could be the positions that win or lose the tournament.

But it's not really been like that. He's pretty much stuck to quite a settled team." tutur Michael Owen, Mantan Penyerang Timnas Inggris.

Inggris melaju ke babak semifinal setelah menyingkirkan Norwegia dengan skor 2-1 melalui babak perpanjangan waktu, sementara Argentina lolos setelah mengalahkan Swiss dengan skor 3-1 juga lewat perpanjangan waktu.