Unbeaten in 12 games in all competitions, they'd won their last six matches, scoring 14 and conceding only one. So far at the World Cup, prior to the England game, no opponent had breached their goal, which was a feat that no other team in the competition could match.
Mexico had only ever lost twice at the Azteca
Effectively at home in a partisan Estadio Azteca that generated a cauldron of noise before and during the game, England were going to have to run the gauntlet, as well as cope with the problems that playing at altitude often brings.
Not to mention that Mexico had only lost two competitive games at the venue in their entire history (W70, D17), and had never lost a World Cup fixture in Mexico City (W8, D2).
Tuchel would likely point to the Three Lions' perfect qualifying campaign and the fact that they too were unbeaten in the last six (W5, D1), scoring 12 and conceding three, as reasons enough to be optimistic, as well as the simple fact that England had emerged victorious in the last four H2Hs.
The real prize, of course, other than silencing the Azteca, was a quarter-final against Norway, who had won 2-1 against Brazil a few hours before thanks to a brace from Erling Haaland.
World Cup 2026
The 2026 World Cup will be held from June 11th to July 19th in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The tournament will feature 48 national teams and will be played in 16 modern stadiums.
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Yellow card in the opening minute
A yellow card for Declan Rice in the opening minute wasn't the best way for Tuchel's side to begin the game, and though the Three Lions appeared to be overrun in the opening exchanges, with 'ole's' heard in the stands inside the first five minutes, collective possession was relatively equal (51.4% to 48.6% in favour of England).
The ability to take the sting out of the game was key to English aspirations, and as they started to find their rhythm, Mexican frustration was already obvious.
Before 15 minutes had even been played, Marc Guehi had already won possession back on three occasions, won two one-on-one duels, seen a solitary dribble end successfully, and 14 of his 15 passes reached their target.
Raul Jimenez had an early effort blocked, and the same player's incredible diving header was met with an equally impressive save from Jordan Pickford to stop a certain goal.
Gordon sets the tone for England
Even at such an early stage, it was clear that a disciplined performance would be key to Tuchel's side progressing, and the German coach would surely have been happy with the industry from Jarell Quansah and Bukayo Saka, both of whom matched Guehi with a 100% success in their ground duels.
Whilst there was a little more thrust about Mexico's attacking play, England remained comfortable in possession, and that showed with perfect passing stats from Ezri Konsa, Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Saka, as the game reached the first hydration break.
Had Anthony Gordon's on-target effort directly after the stoppage gone in, it would've been one of the goals of the tournament, thanks to the piece of skill that preceded it.
Indeed, the Barcelona man was enjoying great success down the Mexican right side, and to that point had been the only England player to have a touch in the opposition box.
Five total duels before the half-hour mark were also more than double that of any of his colleagues.
Bellingham at the double
With 10 minutes to play before half-time, a move that began with Jordan Pickford's throw-out ended with Bellingham heading the Three Lions into the lead. Just two minutes later, the same player got on the end of Kane's pull-back to leave Mexican supporters with their heads in their hands.
The double from the Real Madrid man was his only two touches in the box in the first half, and arguably two of his most important in a national team shirt.
Coupled with seven accurate passes from eight attempted, six total duels attempted (the second most from an England perspective), and a 100% tackle success, his was an individual performance of real note.
Before half-time, however, the Azteca came alive again as Julian Quinones was left all alone after a Mexican free-kick, and he hammered the ball into the roof of the net to reduce the deficit.
Quansah sees red
Pickford's second astonishing stop of the half from a flying Jimenez header, and Bellingham's last-ditch tackle both saved a certain second goal for Mexico, in a game that had become the most absorbing watch.
Nico O'Reilly's shot against the woodwork at the beginning of the second half served notice on Mexico that England were still a threat, and with the hosts having to chase the game, it afforded the Three Lions more room to work in.
Elliot Anderson's winning back of possession on four occasions, and four duels won from five attempted, perfectly complemented his passing range as England took control of the central areas.
However, their task was made that much harder when Quansah was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Jesus Gallardo, which required the intervention of VAR, and which energised the home support once more.
Kane scores a penalty and then concedes one
When Gordon used his pace to latch onto a Kane flick-on and tempt Raul Rangel into a foul, Kane was then given a chance to score his sixth goal of the tournament from the spot.
Despite a long delay thanks to Mexican protests, the England captain made no mistake with his first shot on target to give his side a two-goal advantage again.
With just over 20 minutes to play, more incessant Mexican protests resulted in a VAR review of a Kane challenge.
The official, Alireza Faghani, determined a foul had been committed, and Jimenez scored from the resultant penalty in a game that you couldn't take your eyes off.
Attack v defence in the closing stages
There appeared to be a very real possibility that Faghani was going to struggle to retain control, as tempers frayed on both sides. Indeed, 12 fouls committed by Mexico were their most in a match in this edition of the tournament.
After the second hydration break, Tuchel's defensive substitutions meant England adopted a back five in order to stem the wave of attacks from El Tri.
The match had taken on a real attack versus defence feel, and that was evidenced by Mexico's 62.6% collective possession, compared to England's 37.4%.
Unable to put together any sort of sustained possession, a backs-against-the-wall showing from the Three Lions continued to frustrate the hosts.
With five minutes left of normal time, Mexico had attempted an astonishing 34 crosses to England's four, but every English player was doing their bit. Gordon, Bellingham and Kane alone had been involved in 42 one-on-one duels.
Despite not having a shot on goal after Kane's 60th-minute effort, and with 11 minutes of injury time added on, England held on for one of the most famous victories in their entire history, in the stadium where 40 years previously the 'Hand of God' had seen them sent home.
Perhaps divine intervention was in play once more here, as the Lions roar on.
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