Thomas Tuchel wants us to believe in miracles, or perhaps just selective amnesia. The England boss claims he is absolutely shocked by Reece James’ latest hamstring blowout. Seriously. He said nobody saw it coming. This is the same Tuchel who watched James break down repeatedly during their shared stint at Chelsea. It defies belief.
Tuchel’s 26-man World Cup squad already raised eyebrows. Critics howled. He did not care, prioritizing his system over big names. The tournament started hot with a 4-2 dismantling of Croatia. Then, reality bit. A dreary scoreless draw against Ghana slowed the hype train. Now, the James injury ahead of the Panama clash has reopened old wounds about squad depth.
England is through to the knockouts, but the right-back spot is a disaster zone. James is out for the Round of 32, at least. His backup, Tino Livramento, already packed his bags and left the tournament injured. Tuchel summoned Trevoh Chalobah in a panic. That leaves Djed Spence as the likely starter. Behind him? Chaos. Jarel Quansah and Nico O’Reilly are square pegs for round holes, and Quansah is already nursing a busted ankle from Saturday.
Still, Tuchel shrugs. He points to Ezri Konsa filling in. “No problem,” he insists. It is a bold face for a familiar tragedy. Tuchel knows James’ medical file better than anyone. When the German took over Chelsea in 2021, James was just recovering from a hamstring issue. A year later, another one cost him 50 days. To pretend this setback is some freak, unpredictable act of God is pure theater.
But the manager remains defiant. He chose this squad. He owns the consequences. Tuchel insists James will play again in this tournament, labeling the tear a “minor” issue. He is on an accelerated rehab program. Of course, that depends on England actually surviving long enough for him to lace up his boots.
