England take on Argentina in the World Cup 2026 semi-finals in Atlanta tonight.
The winner will face Spain after Luis de la Fuente’s side eased past France in a comprehensive 2-0 victory in Dallas.
Tuchel has an almost fully fit squad of players to pick from, with Declan Rice fully recovered and able to start for the Three Lions after illness.
But Tuchel has a big decision to make at right-back: Jarell Quansah remains suspended, while injury-prone Reece James could be saved for later in the game if he is unable to play at least 90 minutes.
That will mean Djed Spence or Ezri Konsa starting; should the former be selected, then Tuchel would have to decide between the latter and John Stones to partner Marc Guehi at centre-back.
Jordan Henderson's wrist injury should rule him out, but he did not rule out an appearance later in the tournament when speaking before the quarter-final win over Norway and could play with a cast.
Argentina’s side is also settled, with either Julian Alvarez or Lautaro Martinez, both back in scoring form for the Albiceleste, starting alongside Lionel Messi.
It will be the first time Messi takes on England, thanks to an “anti-football” red card to miss a 2005 friendly, with Thomas Tuchel admitting that he could use man marking to combat the No 10.
"I was thinking about [how to deal with Messi],” Tuchel said in his pre-match press conference. “If we do an old school man mark, not sure if we follow through with this idea, but it crossed my mind. Everyone knows the space he wants to show up. Everyone knows he sees stuff before everyone else.”
Thiago Almada and Nico Gonzalez bring attacking options in midfield, but Leandro Paredes could offer more defensive cover and is the favourite to start in the other key decision for Lionel Scaloni.
England predicted starting line-up: Pickford; Konsa, Stones, Guehi, O'Reilly; Rice, Anderson; Saka, Bellingham, Gordon; Kane
Argentina predicted starting lineup: E. Martinez; Molina, Romero, Li. Martinez, Tagliafico; Paredes; De Paul, Fernandez, Mac Allister; Messi, Alvarez
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