‘I was worried’ – Carragher tells Tuchel to drop England star against Ghana | OneFootball

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher insists Thomas Tuchel should bring Marc Guehi into the starting XI as England face Ghana on Tuesday evening.

The Three Lions produced a great performance to beat Croatia 4-2 in their opening Group L match to give themselves a very good chance of qualifying for the knockout rounds.

Leading up to the match, there were rumours that Guehi would be left out of the England starting XI with Ezri Konsa and John Stones starting ahead of the Manchester City centre-back.

And the leak was true as Konsa started alongside Stones, who hasn’t played much football recently, at the heart of the England defence – but Carragher would like to see Guehi back in the side.

Carragher told Sky Sports: “For me, the first player in the back four would’ve been Marc Guehi. I was surprised that he didn’t play.

“I was worried about John Stones and the amount of football he’s had. Not even just in the last few weeks, it’s over the last few years.

“I mean, to expect someone to come into a game like that and perform at his absolute best, I’m not quite sure about that one.

“He gives something different from the others who are more out-and-out defenders. Stones has great experience as well. You’re bringing him to play.

“There’s no point in bringing him to sit on the bench. But for me, Marc Guehi would be playing. I’d probably give Stones another go and try and get up to speed.

“Hopefully by the time you get to the really big games in the knockout stages, he’s had two or three full 90 minutes under his belt and looks a lot better.”

There are some fears over Declan Rice’s fitness after a long season of club football with Arsenal, where he won the Premier League title and reached the Champions League final.

On whether Rice will be rested against Ghana, Carragher added: “You don’t rest when you’re at the World Cup.

“If England could win the next game, maybe you’d look to do that in the third game if you’re guaranteed top spot.

“But no, I don’t think you’re in a situation where you’re resting Declan Rice. I think it was more precautionary than too much of an injury [Tuchel’s decision to take Rice off vs Croatia].

“It’s something that he’s been carrying for a lot of the season. He’s been one of the best players in the league. It hasn’t affected him too much at all, playing for Arsenal.

“It was probably the right decision to bring him off and make sure he’s 100 per cent fit for this game. If needs be, get this game won and out of the way and rest him against Panama.”

Turning his focus to Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka, who only recently returned to fitness after an injury, Carragher said: The fact that he didn’t start the first game means it’s probably a little more serious than what Rice has got.

“He did miss a lot of football last season. It looks like this is a little bit more of a problem for him. I don’t think you do risk it because you don’t want to lose him for the tournament.

“But the longer the tournament goes without him starting a game, it’s very difficult to expect him to come in for the knockout games and be at his absolute best.

“The longer Madueke is in the team or if he starts the next game and it goes well, it might be difficult for Bukayo to get back because of the nature of the tournament.

“But it’s certainly not one to take a risk with because the tournament has started – you don’t want to lose a player.”