Thomas Tuchel decision slammed as England fans savage player who was ‘useless’ vs Albania
England fans weren’t pleased with the performance of one player during their World Cup qualifier against Albania.
Thomas Tuchel’s men had an opportunity to place a flawless campaign in the history books after England beat Serbia 2-0 at Wembley Stadium on November 13.
The Three Lions entered this clash with seven wins from seven, while scoring 20 goals in the process and conceding zero.
Tuchel decided to make seven changes from the side that beat Serbia, including starts for Crystal Palace maestro Adam Wharton and Real Madrid superstar Jude Bellingham.
But in a tepid opening 45 minutes, England supporters weren’t happy with the performance of one player and made their feelings known online.
John Stones slammed vs Albania
Tuchel notoriously picks players based on form, but there are a few exceptions to that rule, as the selection of John Stones suggests.
The 31-year-old has played just once for Manchester City in their last six Premier League matches, warming the bench on the other five occasions.
Despite this, Stones started against Serbia, and then away at Albania, although his display in the second outing left much to be desired.
The German boss experimented by giving the Englishman license to push into midfield when his side had possession, something Pep Guardiola has done many times before at Man City.
However, Stones was guilty of giving the ball away needlessly and didn’t look comfortable in the role, with England fans criticising him on X.
“Also John Stones in midfield in 2025.. bloke’s useless,” one fan wrote, while another replied: “How high is John Stones in this team ?! Seems to be spending a lot of his time close to Kane, in a false 9/Number 10 position.”
“Call me Negative, but a team that has Dan Burn at CB and John Stones playing CM in build up, doesn’t stand a chance of winning the WC,” someone else stated.
Please stop letting john stones go into midfield👍
— connor jones (@ConnorJ2399) November 16, 2025
& this is the John Stones that people want to be starting over Konsa?? Have a day off #England
— CarrickHB⚽️ (@_kickbackx) November 16, 2025
“John Stones has played just 200 more minutes than Skelly and has been **** this season. I’m sorry, but why is he playing for England?” a sixth questioned.
“Our centre back partnership going into the World Cup has to be Guehi-Konsa. John Stones looks like he hasn’t got it anymore,” another said.
John Stones is pathetic
— Returnee# (@Mrblzxm) November 16, 2025
Thomas Tuchel’s Stones experiment didn’t work
Although England did manage to secure all three points against Albania after Kane’s 73rd-minute winner, pushing Stones further up the pitch didn’t work.
Without Elliot Anderson in midfield alongside Declan Rice, the former Everton defender struggled to dictate proceedings.
Tuchel’s decision caused the Three Lions to look disjointed and they were always susceptible to the counterattack.
But luckily, Harry Kane came up trumps once more with a second-half brace to give England a flawless record in qualifying.