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England manager Thomas Tuchel has addressed concerns over his selection of full-backs after confirming that Reece James will not feature in Saturday’s World Cup group stage match against Panama. James was examined by England’s medical team following Tuesday’s goalless draw with Ghana, during which he reported a hamstring problem.
Tuchel confirmed that the Chelsea right-back did not make the trip from their Kansas City training base to New Jersey for the final Group L fixture, scheduled for 22:00 BST on Saturday. Despite this, the manager remains hopeful that James could recover in time to participate in England’s potential last-32 knockout game, should the team advance. However, sources close to the squad suggest that James’ involvement in the knockout stages remains uncertain.
The situation has intensified scrutiny on Tuchel’s choice to take only three specialist full-backs to the tournament, especially after Tino Livramento’s departure due to a calf injury. The genuine full-back options for England consisted solely of Djed Spence, Reece James, and Livramento. While Nico O’Reilly has some experience playing at left-back, his primary position is in midfield, and Dan Burn, another squad member, is mainly a centre-back despite having played at left-back previously. To cover the right-back position, Tuchel has Spence along with central defenders Jarell Quansah and Ezri Konsa as backups.
Despite the injury setbacks and limited backup options, Tuchel expressed confidence in his current squad depth. “Yes, I am [happy with my options at right-back]. I selected the team, so I’m very happy with everything with the characteristic of the players and strengths that they give us,” he stated. “We would love to have every single key player, we would love to have them available, it’s not available – we find solutions, it’s what we do. It’s a tournament, we move on.” He also reassured that James’ hamstring issue is minor and that the player is undergoing accelerated rehabilitation. “He’s now on an accelerated rehabilitation program and we take it game by game, but we strongly believe that he will be available [during the tournament].”
Meanwhile, Tuchel provided positive updates on the fitness of other key players. Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, and Elliot Anderson are all expected to be fit for the Panama game. Although Rice and Anderson missed training on Thursday due to calf and glute concerns respectively, both returned to training on Friday. Saka, who has been managing a persistent Achilles tendinitis issue, has been deemed ready to start after appearing as a substitute in England’s first two matches
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