China, in typical China fashion, denied they lost control of the station right up to the end.

"Western space experts say they believe China has lost control of the station. China's chief space laboratory designer Zhu Zongpeng has denied Tiangong was out of control, but hasn't provided specifics on what, if anything, China is doing to guide the craft's re-entry."

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tiangong-1-tracking-the-chinese...