The England international will reportedly miss at least two World Cup matches due to Chelsea right-back Reece James suffering a hamstring injury.
James is notoriously injury-prone, yet manager Thomas Tuchel has decided to leave Real Madrid star and former Liverpool hero Trent Alexander-Arnold out of his squad ahead of this summer’s World Cup.
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According to the Guardian, England are currently in a serious situation as James is expected to miss at least two games, meaning he will miss the final group stage game against Panama and the first round of the knockout stages.
James is a big loss for England as he has shone with the national team every time he has been called up, and coach Tuchel used him for 90 minutes in each of the team’s first two games at this World Cup.
England will struggle to find a replacement for Reece James
Not calling up Alexander-Arnold this summer looked like a real gamble, but it has already backfired badly for Three Lions manager Tuchel.
England will have to use either Jed Spence, Jarrell Quansah or Ezri Konsa at right-back for the upcoming games, and all three players will be a significant downgrade for James.
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It will be interesting to see who Tuchel targets, but it won’t be a good thing if England have to face big teams like France, Brazil and Spain without a key player like James.
Chelsea fans will also be nervous about this and will be hoping this is not another long-term absence for James, who has missed significant playing time at Stamford Bridge in recent years due to repeated fitness issues.
