Scholes Calls for Rice to be Dropped for Anderson in England's Knockout Match

Paul Scholes has never been one to tiptoe around a big call, and he’s made another ahead of England’s first knockout tie at this World Cup: drop Declan Rice.

With England safely through as winners of Group L on seven points, Thomas Tuchel’s side now turn to DR Congo on Wednesday night in the last 32. The job in the groups was completed, but not convincingly. A thrilling 4-2 dismantling of Croatia in the opener gave way to a flat stalemate against Ghana and a laboured 2-0 win over Panama that only came to life after the hour mark.

Rice, the Arsenal midfielder who has become one of the pillars of this England era, sat out that Panama game. Tuchel managed his minutes with one eye on a lingering injury concern and another on the booking he picked up against Ghana. The expectation is that Rice walks straight back into the XI for the first knockout round.

Scholes would slam that door shut.

Scholes: Rice out, Anderson in

Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, the former Manchester United midfielder laid out his case with trademark bluntness.

“England don’t need to play two sitting midfielders in the next game,” he said. DR Congo, in his view, are not the sort of opponent that demands a double anchor. “No disrespect to Congo but in those type of games you play as many attackers as possible.”

For Scholes, it comes down to a straight choice in that deeper role: Declan Rice or Elliot Anderson.

“I think it has to be a straight shootout between Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson, and I think I would just go with Anderson,” he said. The key, in his eyes, is what happens on the ball. “I think he will pass it forward a bit more.”

Then came the pointed comparison with Rice’s club form. Scholes acknowledged Rice’s stature – “he’s a great player and a great leader” – but questioned the attacking fluency around him.

“Think about Rice with Arsenal… look, he’s a great player and a great leader, I get all that, and you’d rather him in your team than not most of the time. But Arsenal didn’t play great football last season either, did they? Rice couldn’t get [Martin] Odegaard in the game, so maybe that’s transferred a bit to England. I don’t think that happens with Anderson.”

For a player widely regarded as one of the best and most consistent midfielders in the world, it is a stark assessment. Yet it taps into a wider unease about England’s tempo and imagination in possession after that electric start against Croatia.

Concerns over England’s level

Scholes didn’t stop at the Rice debate. He widened his lens to the entire campaign so far and the broader picture at this World Cup.

“It wasn’t great, was it?” he said of the Panama performance. England eventually wore down their opponents, but it was attritional rather than exhilarating.

Across the three group games, Scholes has not seen a side he believes will go all the way. “Across the three games I don’t think I’ve seen a team that will win the World Cup,” he admitted. The results are there. The conviction is not.

“It hasn’t been great but look, they could get better and they’re winning games and I do think they’ve got match winners in the team. I just don’t think they’re at the level of France or Argentina yet.”

That is the crux of it. England are progressing, but comparisons with the tournament’s heavyweights still feel uncomfortable. The margins get thinner from here; Tuchel’s midfield call will shape how England try to close that gap.

Butt backs Rice, but agrees on shape

Not everyone from that Manchester United midfield dynasty shares Scholes’ preferred solution, even if they agree on the problem.

Nicky Butt, another former England international and a long-time teammate of Scholes, also believes Tuchel must abandon the safety net of two holding players. His logic is rooted in dominance of the ball.

“You can’t play two sitting midfielders against teams who aren’t going to have any of the possession,” Butt said. The principle is the same: against weaker opposition, England should commit more bodies forward and trust their control.

Where Butt diverges is on the name on the teamsheet.

“I’d definitely play Declan Rice in the next game so I would leave Elliot Anderson out,” he insisted. Butt is a huge admirer of Anderson – “I think he’s been brilliant and is a top, top, top player which is why Man City have gone and paid £120m for him” – but for him, Rice remains undroppable.

“I just don’t think you can leave Declan Rice out. He’s one of those players you just don’t leave out.”

Two former midfielders, two different answers, one shared message to Tuchel: pick only one sitter.

A different kind of test in DR Congo

Waiting in the last 32 are DR Congo, who slipped through as third in Group K after beating Uzbekistan, drawing with Portugal and losing to Colombia. They are awkward, unpredictable, and far from the cannon fodder some might lazily assume.

England will expect to dominate territory and possession. That is exactly why the debate around Rice and Anderson matters. Do you trust the established leader who locks down transitions and sets the platform, or the more progressive passer who might feed the attacking lines quicker?

Tuchel came to this World Cup with the mandate to end 60 years of hurt on American soil. He has already shown he can send out a side to thrill, as Croatia discovered. Now comes the grind of knockout football, where one misjudged selection can drag a heavyweight into a dogfight.

Scholes would roll the dice. Butt would stick with the banker. Tuchel must decide which voice he hears when he looks at that team sheet in the dressing room on Wednesday night.