Former France central defender Marcel Desailly has hit out at some of England coach Thomas Tuchel’s decisions at the 2026 World Cup.
Ex AC Milan powerhouse Desailly believes that Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham is ill-suited to playing as a number 10 and should be further back, and that decision has prevented England from seeing the best of Aston Villa playmaker Morgan Rogers as an attacking option.
The former Chelsea defender was also left stunned that Blues full-back Reece James was called up, pointing out that his poor fitness record made him an injury problem just waiting to happen.
England face Mexico in the last 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the early hours of Monday morning, having beaten Croatia, Panama and DR Congo and drawn with Ghana.
Apart from an impressive second-half showing against Croatia, Tuchel’s Three Lions have looked sluggish and disjointed, relying on captain Harry Kane’s goals to get them out of jail.
Problem with England team
During an exclusive conversation with sportscasting.com, Desailly stated: “I have a problem with the English team, despite the set-up they’ve won with, which is good for building up, learning and developing skills.
“But Morgan Rogers was not in his correct position; he’s not been able to show his ability.
“When it comes to [Jude] Bellingham, I believe that in a 4-2-3-1, when he’s in the middle of the three, I’m not sure it’s his best position. He’s not a number 10.
“He is an amazing player, but he’s not a number 10.
“Against Panama, he was placed into the midfield two as the second midfielder because Rice was injured, but I believe Tuchel put him in there because of his ability to get up and down the pitch and his dynamism.
“Under a different tactical set-up – if France played a 4-3-3 – Bellingham would absolutely have his say in coming into the system as one of the three midfielders.
“But the way England is set up now, I’m not sure where you place him.
“For me, he would be perfect playing in a midfield three with one sitting player in the middle and another dynamic midfielder outside him.”
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Limited options
Tuchel’s squad selections in defence have come under fire, especially at right-back, where Djed Spence filled in for injured star James against DR Congo.
Desailly said: “I am a little bit surprised on the right side of the defence and the limited options England have.
“Reece James… we know he’s going to get injured. You have the statistics, you know it.
“Okay, he can play in midfield to help a little bit, so that’s an option, which is great.
“If you put him at right-back, on his day, there isn’t a better one because he’s so intelligent, but his physicality has always been a major worry.”
Unbelievable ability
Desailly continued: “Meanwhile, Tuchel decides to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold out, a guy that has unbelievable ability with the ball. His free-kicks and deliveries are key.
“Instead of asking Bellingham to run all over the park, England had a technical weapon in Alexander-Arnold, and he’s not even in the squad.
“Okay, [Phil] Foden, okay, [Cole] Palmer – we understand why both of those players aren’t there, and you also have options to replace them.
“But on the right side… James cannot project himself like he did before.
“He has not yet recovered 100% from his injury, but he’s a guarantee for the team in terms of identifying the momentum to go forward. So it is what it is.”
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Strange decision on TAA
Desailly added: “England had to put Spence, a player who is normally on the left, but also has the ability to play on the right, at right-back.
“So for me, the decision not to take Alexander-Arnold looks really strange when you see the limited options available to Tuchel in the absence of James.
“I think it is a decision from Tuchel to remove Alexander-Arnold because he’s a leader, and Tuchel wants to create a different dynamic in the group. We understand.
“But for James, you knew out of the six matches you were supposed to play, when you look at the stats, you knew that he was going to be unavailable for a couple of matches because of his physical problems.”
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Michael Davey