The six England squad decisions awaiting Thomas Tuchel for the World Cup

First Thomas Tuchel could give out the good news. In a couple of months, the England manager will have to dispense the bad. By naming 35 players in his squad to face Uruguay and Japan , and then adding Harvey Barnes and Ben White as replacements , Tuchel is guaranteeing he will have to disappoint plenty when reducing that to the 26 who make his cut for the World Cup .

And yet, in a way, part of the German’s task is how he goes from 23 to 26: the strategy involved in the finding the last three members of his party. If Tuchel takes two players for every position, and has to choose a third goalkeeper, he has three other slots available: what should be his thinking in filling them. A fifth centre-back?

Harry Maguire may get a recall for the World Cup with John Stones lacking match fitness (PA Wire) The logic of it may depend upon his best central defender. Because John Stones has played so little football for Manchester City, with no Premier League start since October, it would be a risk to take him as one of just four centre-backs, despite the excellent fitness records of Ezri Konsa and Marc Guehi. Selecting five could also aid the chances of the recalled Harry Maguire , who has spent spells on the sidelines himself in recent years.

Few of Tuchel’s full-backs are plausible centre-back options: only the late addition White and Reece James , his first-choice right-back, so that may be an added reason to go with five specialists in the middle. Five full-backs? Reece James missed out on the March squad due to a fresh hamstring injury (The FA via Getty Images) James had spent longer on the sidelines than Stones in recent seasons but, while he is sitting out the current squad, he has made 36 appearances this season.