Tuchel's Right-Back Gamble Unravels as England Lose Both Options Before DR Congo

England have no fit specialist right-back for their World Cup last-32 tie against DR Congo on Wednesday, with both Jarell Quansah and Reece James missing training in Kansas City. It is a defensive crisis of England's own making, and it lands in a knockout match where mistakes end tournaments.

Quansah twisted his ankle in Saturday's 2-0 win over Panama. James has not trained since limping out of the goalless draw with Ghana. Thomas Tuchel is now scrambling for a solution down England's right flank against a live opponent.

The right-back crisis: how England ran out of options

The unravelling began before England had even kicked a ball at this tournament. On the eve of the opener, Newcastle full-back Tino Livramento withdrew with a calf issue.

A replacement who was not a like-for-like replacement

Crucially, Tuchel called up Trevoh Chalobah as a central defensive option, not full-back cover. That decision left the right-back department dangerously thin from the outset.

Then the dominoes fell. James sustained a hamstring injury against Ghana in the second group game. Quansah, the Bayer Leverkusen defender handed his World Cup debut in James's absence, lasted until the Panama match before his ankle went.

Here is the chronology that has left England exposed:

• Livramento: withdrew before the opener with a calf issue.
• James: hamstring injury in the 0-0 draw with Ghana.
• Quansah: twisted ankle in the 2-0 win over Panama.

Tuchel has previously suggested James could be in contention for DR Congo. But with the Chelsea man yet to resume training, his involvement looks doubtful at best.

Spence or Konsa? Tuchel's makeshift solutions for DR Congo

Tuchel is left with two improvised options, and neither is a natural right-back.

Djed Spence, the left-back filling in on the right

Djed Spence replaced Quansah against Panama and has been England's utility man throughout the group stage. The 25-year-old played the final 10 minutes of the opening win over Croatia at left-back, the position he occupied for most of last season at Tottenham.

He then started the Ghana draw at left-back before shifting across to replace Quansah at right-back in the 63rd minute. Asking a natural left-back to anchor the right flank in a knockout tie is exactly the kind of compromise that markets may be underpricing.

Ezri Konsa, the trusted centre-back option

Ezri Konsa. The Aston Villa defender has become one of Tuchel's most trusted players and a regular starter since the German took charge in January 2025.

Konsa made his England debut at right-back against Brazil in 2024, when Gareth Southgate praised his handling of Vinicius Jr.

Konsa is a centre-back by trade, but his previous outings on the right and his standing under Tuchel make him the more experienced international choice. The decision between Spence and Konsa will shape England's entire defensive shape against DR Congo.

The Alexander-Arnold question and whether Tuchel's squad was ever balanced

Every improvised solution points back to one glaring absence. Trent Alexander-Arnold, England's most naturally gifted right-back, is not here.

Frozen out at the moment he is needed most

The Real Madrid defender has fallen down the pecking order under Tuchel. He has played just once for the manager because of injury and was not selected for squads in the build-up to this tournament.

That decision now looks especially pointed. With two specialist right-backs injured and Tuchel choosing between a left-back and a centre-back, the absence of a genuine right-back specialist is a self-inflicted wound.

A squad-building failure exposed

The scrutiny is not really about the injuries. Injuries happen at every tournament. The question is why England travelled with so little cover in a single position.

Chalobah was called up as a centre-back. Livramento's late withdrawal was not adequately replaced with like-for-like cover. And the one man who could have provided elite quality on the right was omitted entirely.

For fans, it raises real doubts about England's readiness to go deep. For bettors, it introduces genuine tactical uncertainty around clean sheets and vulnerability down the right flank that the markets may not yet reflect.

What happens next

Tuchel will name his side for DR Congo with the right-back decision as the defining call. Expect Spence or Konsa to start, with James's fitness monitored right up to kick-off but realistically unlikely.

If England progress, the right-back question does not disappear, it intensifies against stronger opposition later in the bracket. A makeshift solution that survives DR Congo may not survive a quarter-final.

The deeper story is whether Tuchel's squad was ever balanced enough for a serious World Cup run. Wednesday's team sheet will be the first real test of a gamble that has come home to roost.