England win crazy bronze medal match against France, but why was it frustrating?

England registered their best World Cup finish since 1966 after beating France in a crazy bronze medal match at the Miami Stadium. 

On Saturday night, the Three Lions triumphed 6-4, and after going 4-0 up in the first half, it looked like England were cruising. 

France did fight back in the second half, but England did just enough to keep Les Bleus at arms length in a match which ultimately does not mean much. 

While the England squad walking away with a medal will serve as some sort of silver lining, this is why the performance has left a frustrated feeling amongst the England fans. 

If Saka was fit, why didn't he play against Argentina? 

Arsenal's Bukayo Saka did not feature much at this World Cup. 

Appearing in every match besides the semi-final defeat to Argentina, Saka started just two of the six games he featured in, and this was cited due to fitness issues. 

However, against France, he was a world beater. Scoring a hattrick, Saka was causing all sorts of problems for a France team which had nearly arrived at the beach. 

The fact Saka produced such an impressive performance has once more put more pressure on manager Tuchel as to why he did not play someone who could have made the difference when it really mattered on Wednesday night. 

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Defence exposed in France second half fightback

France did put forward a dangerous attacking trio of Michael Olise, Desire Doue and captain Kylian Mbappe, but in the first half, England's back four kept them quiet. 

Djed Spence, Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa and Jarel Quansah were giving a good account of themselves, and Konsa even got himself on the scoresheet with his header in the 18th minute putting the Three Lions 2-0 up. 

However, in the second half, this back four was cut open all too easily as Mbappe scored a double, along with Bradley Barcola's successful effort. 

This will likely have been a classic case of complacency, England's defence needs to be more water tight regardless. This was the team's second match against one of the international football powerhouses at this World Cup and they were punished for silly mistakes. 

While the bronze medal match does not carry much jeopardy, this performance could come back to haunt them in the upcoming Nations League and Euro 2028. 

Rice a transformed man after illness

Midfielder Declan Rice became more and more invisible as England progressed through the World Cup. 

The Arsenal had been hit with a stomach bug and while he was fit to start against Norway and Argentina, Rice struggled.

One of Rice's strengths is to pick up possession and drive forward, whilst also being an effective set piece taker, but this had all but disappeared when England needed it most. 

Against France, Rice was a man transformed. He was progressing play up the pitch, and his long range effort in the third minute put England ahead. 

It makes you think about what could have been if this version of Rice was able to deliver this sort of performance when it mattered most. 

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A dressing room in tatters

It's no surprise Tuchel was under immense scrutiny after the defeat to Argentina, and it appeared the England dressing room was an emotional mess for this win over France. 

Assistant Anthony Barry had conducted his final halftime interview of the tournament on Saturday night, and he was on the brink of tears. 

"I have to be honest, no frustration. I'm a little bit emotional, I'm struggling to find the words to describe how proud I am of these players. They're playing the game with broken hearts," Barry told BBC Sport. 

"I see 11 lads with broken hearts, seen them in the last two days broken hearts, they can build a performance like that through playing for England, the team spirit we built the last seven weeks, it's been a privilege to watch."

If these comments from Barry are to go by, the England dressing room is a mess and each member of this squad needs to go away and forget about football as the dust settles. 

Hopefully this will provide England with a much-needed reset, but if emotions were running high for a bronze medal match which is often deemed meaningless, what was it like in a semi-final against Argentina which had so much fanfare around it?

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