England's German head coach Thomas Tuchel (L)in training. | Photo Credit: AFP

England’s opening World Cup match against Croatia on Wednesday ​will be refereed by Frenchman Clement Turpin, who was ‌once labelled “Grade E” by Thomas Tuchel who ​is now its coach.

Turpin sent then-Bayern ⁠Munich boss Tuchel to the stands for protesting during his team’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City in the Champions ‌League quarterfinal, second leg in April 2023 after showing the German two yellow cards.

Turpin ‌issued a total of five first-half bookings ‌and ⁠initially showed Bayern defender Dayot Upamecano a ⁠straight red card - later overturned following a VAR offside decision.

City beat Bayern 4-1 on aggregate.

Turpin’s decisions enraged Tuchel.

“Two things couldn’t keep ​up with the ‌level, the pitch wasn’t in good condition and also the referee, unfortunately, was Grade E,” Tuchel said after the match.

“I’d give him a one ‌out of 10. He was absolutely terrible. It’s ​unbelievable at this level. He was whistling for everything and anything. Everything was ⁠against us.

“In the end, we were never in a position to turn things around with three men ‌against us. That’s a fact.”

England’s Jude Bellingham has also clashed with the French referee, who pushed the Real Madrid player away from the penalty area when he tried to distract Bayern’s Harry Kane as he stepped up to take a ‌penalty in a Champions League semifinal in 2024.

“I’m sure (Bellingham) was ​saying something to try and put me off but, thankfully, it was OK,” Bellingham’s ⁠England teammate Kane told reporters after the game. “I don’t ⁠know what he was saying. I saw him there mumbling something.”

Turpin has taken charge of ‌the 2021 Europa League final, the 2022 Champions League final and England’s 0-0 draw with ​Slovenia at the 2024 European Championship. 

Published on Jun 15, 2026