Telegraph: England's right-back crisis deepens; Tuchel's decision to exclude TAA now looks absurd

Reece James is injured, and Quansah has suffered an ankle sprain. The Telegraph believes that Tuchel's refusal to bring a backup right-back has now forced the entire team to pay the price. With the knockout stages approaching, England's right-back position is in near-complete disarray. In hindsight, Tuchel's decision not to include Alexander-Arnold appears absurd.

The Daily Telegraph pointed out that before the match against Panama, England's right-back predicament had a tragic irony to it: "Mr. Tuchel, losing one right-back may be considered bad luck, but losing two is carelessness."

Now, the coach faces a third casualty, as Quansah joins Reece James and Tino Livramento on the injury list. At this rate, even 62-year-old Lee Dixon might be tempted to climb down from the ITV commentary box to fill the void.

When asked about Reece James' sudden hamstring injury—which will sideline him for at least two World Cup matches—Thomas Tuchel said: "No one could have predicted this would happen."

However, anyone with basic foresight could have seen that this player, who has missed 129 combined club and international games over five years, is inherently injury-prone in major tournaments. Tuchel has always favored James, and during his time at Chelsea, he openly stated that he wished he had two Reece James.

Now, it is difficult not to wonder whether this favoritism has left England in an avoidable crisis, facing multiple knockout matches without a single world-class right-back available.

In the final half hour against Panama, Spence was moved to right-back as an emergency measure. This makeshift solution barely worked against Panama, ranked 43rd in the world, but against Brazil, Argentina, and France, this weakened defense is likely to collapse rapidly. The blame will inevitably fall on Tuchel.

He underestimated James' injury vulnerability and should have long recognized that Livramento has struggled with fitness issues at Newcastle. Yet he still brought two players prone to injury to the tournament. Meanwhile, the talented right-back Alexander-Arnold—whose transfer from Liverpool to Real Madrid made global headlines—sits unused on the bench.

It is easy to imagine Alexander-Arnold's frustration as the team relied on Spence for a rescue. The 27-year-old has just returned to peak form, delivering an impressive first season in La Liga and fully demonstrating his all-around capabilities as a playmaking full-back. But it was too late; Tuchel simply did not select him for the World Cup squad. When Livramento was injured, Tuchel had an opportunity to reconsider, but instead brought in center-back Trevoh Chalobah. With these arrangements, Quansah—a center-back for Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen—was hastily deployed as a right-back in an emergency.

This desperate lineup deeply alarmed Gary Neville, an expert on full-back play. "If someone had told me a few months ago that Quansah would be playing right-back in a major tournament, I would have thought we were in serious trouble," he said. "I saw Quansah play right-back in the League Cup final, and it was not pretty."

An even worse moment came in the 63rd minute when Quansah's ankle gave way, and he collapsed to the ground in evident pain.

This emergency deployment has already raised doubts about his suitability for the position. In the crucial knockout stages, can he realistically be expected to contain wingers like Vinícius and Doué? For now, that question remains unanswered. Quansah appears likely to be sidelined with injury, forcing Tuchel to find yet another solution—deploying Spence or Ezri Konsa as alternatives.

The most frustrating aspect is that this crisis should never have occurred. Alexander-Arnold was the obvious choice for Tuchel, particularly after being overlooked by Southgate for years—he deserved this tournament opportunity. He has won multiple Premier League titles, transferred to Real Madrid where he won the Champions League, and has repeatedly proven his mettle in crucial club matches. Yet Tuchel chose to gamble on alternative players with higher injury risks.

Ultimately, England's two goals secured top spot in their group, temporarily masking a problem that is now spiraling into crisis. The decisive phase of the World Cup is about to begin, but the right-back position is in complete disarray.

Tuchel's decision to exclude Alexander-Arnold seemed questionable at the time. Now it appears utterly absurd.

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