England's Right-Back Dilemma: Waddle's Bold Suggestion for Tuchel

England are into the World Cup knockout rounds, but they arrive in Mexico City with a problem that just won’t go away. Thomas Tuchel has a right flank held together by tape and hope, and the next 90 minutes come at 1am UK time against a Mexico side yet to concede a goal and boasting a perfect record.

This is no time for experiments. Yet England might have no choice.

Injuries Pile Up on the Right

The plan at right-back has been shredded. Tino Livramento never kicked a ball in North America. Reece James followed him onto the treatment table once the tournament started. Jarell Quansah, another option on that side, has also broken down.

Then came the latest twist: Djed Spence, the man who started against DR Congo, is now a doubt as well.

Tuchel’s decision to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold at home already raised eyebrows when the squad was named. With each new injury bulletin, the scrutiny only intensifies. A Real Madrid star, a Champions League winner, watching this drama unfold from afar while England scramble for a solution.

Yet one former England international believes Tuchel was right to omit him – and has a very different Liverpool name in mind.

Waddle Backs Alexander-Arnold Snub

Chris Waddle knows what it means to go deep at a World Cup. A semi-finalist in 1990, he has seen enough tournaments to understand the value of durability as much as flair.

“Alexander-Arnold played 30 games last season and didn’t complete enough games – so no, I wouldn't say that it was a mistake to leave him behind,” Waddle said, speaking to 10bet.

If you pick Alexander-Arnold, Waddle argued, you do it for his quality on the ball, not because he offers reliability across a long, gruelling tournament. That, in his eyes, matters just as much.

The same concern, he insists, should always have applied to the players Tuchel did bring.

“We knew Reece James is – unfortunately, he's a top player – but he's always injured, as is Tino Livramento,” Waddle said. “Looking at the squad straight away, you had to put a question mark over their injuries.”

It is a blunt assessment. But the evidence is now scattered across England’s medical room.

“So maybe taking two right-backs who are constantly injured was a risk, and the manager should have probably looked at that,” Waddle added. “As players, their quality is undeniable... but their track record of being injured was a red alert for me.”

That red alert is now blaring in the build-up to Mexico.

A Midfielder in Defence?

England’s 2-1 win over DR Congo in the round of 32 came courtesy of two late Harry Kane goals. It also left Tuchel with more tactical questions than answers.

One of the more intriguing developments came when Declan Rice shifted to right-back. It wasn’t seamless, but it showed Tuchel has at least one emergency route: move a midfielder into the role and reshuffle the pack.

Waddle believes that idea should be pushed even further.

“If you look at the rest of the squad, I know he has played Jarrel Quansah there, but why not play a midfield player there?” he said. “Play Declan Rice there and put a creative midfield player in the centre instead.”

For Waddle, the issue is not just who fills the right-back slot. It’s what that decision unlocks elsewhere.

He wants England to be braver in midfield. To swap safe, short passing for players who can rip open games with one swing of the boot.

“Put Eberechi Eze alongside Elliot Anderson, and say to them, ‘look, I want you to pass. If you see a 30-, 40-, or 50-yard pass, I want you to hit it’,” Waddle said. “That is how we're going to score more goals and get the wingers into the game.”

Right now, he sees too much sameness.

“At the minute, you've got two midfield players who are exactly the same, and it’s all 10-yard passes. By the time the ball shuffles out to the wing, it’s too late.”

The message is clear: England need someone in the middle who demands the ball and dares to play long.

But Waddle’s boldest suggestion comes not in midfield, but at right-back.

“Play Jordan Henderson at Right-Back”

With Mexico waiting and the margin for error shrinking, Waddle is adamant: the answer lies with a Liverpool great.

Not Alexander-Arnold. Jordan Henderson.

“Against the teams we are playing now, he could play Jordan Henderson at right-back,” Waddle insisted. “Tell me who has got a great winger or who plays on the front foot against England? It’s all counter-attacking, so you may as well have a passer of the ball back there.”

It is a provocative call. Henderson has played just six minutes at this World Cup. Throwing a 34-year-old into an unfamiliar role against an in-form host nation would be a major gamble.

Waddle, though, sees the logic.

“There's no reason Jordan Henderson can't play at right-back,” he said. “He's good on the ball and he's economical. He doesn't have to fly on the overlap or bomb forward. We just want somebody who can play as a right-back, get the ball, control it, and pass it, because I've not seen any team go full throttle at England yet.”

This is the crux of his argument. England dominate the ball against most opponents. They rarely face wave after wave of attacks until they meet the true heavyweights – the Frances, Spains, Argentinas of the world.

So why chase an orthodox, athletic full-back for this stage of the tournament? Why not lean into control, passing range and experience?

“Personally, I'd put Jordan Henderson at right-back,” Waddle said. For him, the veteran’s calm on the ball and understanding of game management outweigh the lack of natural full-back instincts.

Tuchel’s Call in the Lion’s Den

Mexico City will not be forgiving. A partisan crowd, altitude, and a host nation with momentum: this is as hostile as a round-of-16 tie gets.

England arrive with a captain in form, a place in the quarter-finals within reach, and a glaring hole on the right side of their defence.

Tuchel can double down on youth and makeshift solutions. He can push Rice wide and trust others to run the midfield. Or he can do what Waddle urges and hand the right-back berth to a man who has spent a career leading from the centre.

Jordan Henderson at right-back in a World Cup knockout game. It sounds unlikely.

But with injuries mounting and Mexico circling, how bold is Tuchel prepared to be?