World Cup 2026: Bellingham but no Guhi – England’s expected team

If this is indeed the case, it looks like John Stones and Ezri Konsa will start the World Cup as England’s first-choice centre-back combination.

This will come as a shock to many given the view that Mark Guhi is the team’s first choice centre-back.

Guhi was chosen ahead of the Stones by Pep Guardiola in the final months following his move from Crystal Palace to Manchester City, despite the latter’s campaign being hampered by injury.

Guhi has become central to England’s plans for Euro 2024 and his international status is expected to rise further under Tuchel.

But there is a sense that Tuchel prefers more physicality in his central defensive line-up – Stones and Konsa more than Guhi.

However, the England manager will have to consider the question of balance in the game against Croatia.

Guhi generally plays as a left-sided centre-back, so while Stones and Konsa are both right-footed, balance could still be an issue for Tuchel heading into the Croatia tournament.

On the right side of England’s attack, Noni Maduke started ahead of Bukayo Saka on Wednesday.

Of course, a fully fit Saka will almost certainly start ahead of his Arsenal team-mate.

However, Tuchel said that Saka was still affected by a lower leg muscle problem during the tournament, which prevented the striker from taking full part in Arsenal’s season.

Of course, at the Emirates Stadium at the end of last season, there were serious concerns that Saka would miss the final weeks of the campaign and his fitness is still a concern at Arsenal as he is no longer under their umbrella.

However, here in the US there is hope that fitness is improving day by day.

If England were to play in the play-offs today, there’s a chance Saka could start from the start – even if he doesn’t finish the game.

So going into the group stages, how much protection Tuchel will give Saka will be a factor in the team the German decides to pick.

But in Maduke, Tuchel has a player he trusts and clearly assesses, should the manager decide to ease Saka into the competition.