NEW YORK — Precisely 50 days lay between Thomas Tuchel announcing his World Cup squad and England reaching the semi-finals for just the fourth time in history.
All of Tuchel’s more curious selections came with an asterisk. Win the whole thing and few pages in the history books would be dedicated to Phil Foden, Cole Palmer or Trent Alexander-Arnold’s exclusions. A 26-man squad selected via 3D chess, which would eventually come into its own in the later stages.
The hour has arrived for those calls to pay off. It is why Tuchel’s initial 18-month contract was extended before the World Cup began – he is the ultimate big-occasion coach and they do not come much bigger than Argentina in Atlanta.
After the sheer exertion and exhaustion of Norway, England still do not have a full complement to choose from – here is how they could line up.
Pickford
Jordan Pickford has made more saves than any goalkeeper left in the World Cup. That is partly because he’s needed to but he has had a remarkable turnaround after a sub-par group stage.
James
Before the tournament began, it looked as if Reece James would be ruled out for the duration. His return is timely given the dearth of options at right-back, with Tino Livramento injured and Jarell Quansah suspended.
That made his deployment in midfield against Norway all the more baffling, while Kobbie Mainoo took in the action from the bench. Starting James is an obvious risk given his fitness issues and the question is whether Tuchel believes he is capable of managing at least an hour before he turns to his “finishers” – but now is the time to go big or go home.
Stones
Ezri Konsa was suffering from hamstring cramps by the end of the quarter-final. He started the game at right-back but it also means one less option for England in the middle. It was John Stones who most effectively kept Erling Haaland at bay. For all the criticism of Alexander Sorloth for not squaring it to Haaland to make it 2-0 to Norway, Stones did just enough to put him off. He has to start, with Dan Burn in reserve.
Guehi
Denied Antonio Nusa with a superb block against Norway and another sure starter.
Spence
Djed Spence’s performances at this World Cup have typified the season he had with Tottenham – excelling particular when asked to fill in on the left away from his natural position at right-back. There were times when he was almost playing as part of the front three in the quarter-final and it very nearly came off with his penalty appeal.
Nico O’Reilly has done little really wrong at this World Cup and both he and Spence carry an element of risk against an attack as good as Argentina’s, but Spence is the more direct threat if England want to properly exploit the channels.
Rice
Rice has four days to recover from the illness that saw him isolated from the group for much of the week leading up to Norway and subsequently taken off at half-time. He has been tidy enough at this World Cup albeit not spectacular – that is as much a by-product of Tuchel’s approach to the midfield as anything else.
If he cannot manage the full 90, Mainoo simply has to get on to try and thread through the types of balls Rice and Anderson have been reluctant to attempt.
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Anderson
Anderson will be tasked with one job but it is unenviable one – stopping Lionel Messi. He started this tournament at Nottingham Forest and ends it as the most expensive British footballer of all time – he has largely shown why, dominating the midfield. His best creative work came against Mexico and even if not a priority, he will be key if England are to break the lines in between containing Argentina.
Saka
Noni Madueke did not create any chances against Norway and in the same vein as James, it’s time to gamble on Saka even if he is not 100 per cent. Even where he can’t use his pace he is still capable of drifting balls into the box for Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham. There is one other solution at hand – and that’s deploying Morgan Rogers on the right alongside Bellingham. Tuchel hinted at it before the tournament but has only done so sparingly.
Bellingham
It is going to sound absurd whichever way you phrase it but Bellingham is England’s answer to Messi, in that he is the one player around whom Argentina will stand or fall in this semi-final.
It sounds equally absurd to have any doubts over Bellingham, but footage from Spain appears to show him clutching at his shoulder more than once against Norway – given his history of shoulder injuries, that has to be a worry.
Gordon
Much like Pickford, Gordon has had a spectacular turnaround when it matters. It felt unfortunate that his big-money move to Barcelona coincided with their decision not to pursue Marcus Rashford on a permanent basis in that it set up an immediate point of comparison within the squad. Gordon has three assists since then and has more than justified his starting place.
Kane
The one fear over Kane at this World Cup was whether, given the lack of high-quality alternatives, he would be able to complete every game.
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