{"id":957267,"date":"2026-05-13T15:05:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T15:05:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/957267\/"},"modified":"2026-05-13T15:05:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T15:05:19","slug":"nine-options-to-replace-ben-white-as-england-right-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/957267\/","title":{"rendered":"Nine options to replace Ben White as England right-back"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Ben White\u2019s injury shines a light on one of <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/topic\/england-football?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">England<\/a>\u2019s problem positions heading into the <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/topic\/world-cup?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">World Cup<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The Arsenal defender is among eight players to have started at right-back in <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/sport\/football\/england-thomas-tuchel-gareth-southgate-undoing-4329842?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Thomas Tuchel<\/a>\u2019s 12 matches so far as England manager.<\/p>\n<p>Tuchel this week submitted a provisional 55-player squad for the World Cup, although the full make-up has not been released by the Football Association , and it is unclear whether White has been included.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"510\" width=\"760\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/SEI_296542293.jpg\" alt=\"Soccer Football - Premier League - West Ham United v Arsenal - London Stadium, London, Britain - May 10, 2026 Arsenal's Ben White walks off the pitch after being substituted after sustaining an injury Action Images via Reuters\/Andrew Couldridge EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO USE WITH UNAUTHORIZED AUDIO, VIDEO, DATA, FIXTURE LISTS, CLUB\/LEAGUE LOGOS OR 'LIVE' SERVICES. ONLINE IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES, NO VIDEO EMULATION. NO USE IN BETTING, GAMES OR SINGLE CLUB\/LEAGUE\/PLAYER PUBLICATIONS. PLEASE CONTACT YOUR ACCOUNT REPRESENTATIVE FOR FURTHER DETAILS..\" class=\"wp-image-4415567\"  \/>Ben White suffered a knee injury against West Ham (Photo: Reuters)<\/p>\n<p>White\u2019s World Cup hopes are in the balance after he was ruled out for the remainder of the season when sustaining a significant medial knee ligament injury against West Ham United on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>The 28-year-old had only just returned to the England fold, ending his exile after four years when featuring in March\u2019s friendlies <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/sport\/football\/ben-white-boos-toxic-england-fans-4323692?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">against Uruguay<\/a> \u2013 against whom he scored \u2013 and Japan.<\/p>\n<p>White\u2019s potential absence therefore opens the door for other contenders, including <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/topic\/trent-alexander-arnold?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Trent Alexander-Arnold<\/a>, who has not made the German\u2019s last four squads.<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"--section-color: #A1BE9A\" class=\"qa\">\n<p>Tuchel\u2019s starting right-backs<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Reece James:<\/strong> 4<\/li>\n<li><strong>Kyle Walker*:<\/strong> 2<\/li>\n<li><strong>Curtis Jones:<\/strong> 1<\/li>\n<li><strong>Ezri Konsa:<\/strong> 1<\/li>\n<li><strong>Djed Spence:<\/strong> 1<\/li>\n<li><strong>Jarell Quansah:<\/strong> 1<\/li>\n<li><strong>Tino Livramento:<\/strong> 1<\/li>\n<li><strong>Ben White:<\/strong> 1<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>*Walker has retired from international duty<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Real Madrid right-back Alexander-Arnold has played just 26 minutes for England under Tuchel, against Andorra last summer, but could find his chances of heading to North America have just increased.<\/p>\n<p>But where in the pecking order is he? Many would make him their top pick, but here is where he realistically ranks among the right-backs in contention to start England\u2019s <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/sport\/football\/my-england-world-cup-xi-trent-maguire-4330047?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">World Cup opener<\/a> against Croatia on 17 June.<\/p>\n<p>Curtis Jones<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"507\" width=\"760\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/SEI_296914460.jpg\" alt=\"BARCELONA, SPAIN - JUNE 07: Curtis Jones of England looks on during the FIFA World Cup 2026 European Qualifier match between Andorra and England at RCDE Stadium on June 07, 2025 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Alex Caparros - The FA\/The FA via Getty Images)\" class=\"wp-image-4415557\"  \/>Curtis Jones played at right-back for England last summer (Photo: Getty)<\/p>\n<p>Wait, what? Well, we are counting down after all, and Liverpool\u2019s Curtis Jones made a surprise start at right-back \u2013 ahead of Alexander-Arnold \u2013 in the game against Andorra last June.<\/p>\n<p>Jones\u2019s versatility makes him a strong squad option, but after making Tuchel\u2019s first two squads in 2025 he has missed out on the last four.<\/p>\n<p>Joe Gomez<\/p>\n<p>Jones\u2019 club teammate Joe Gomez can play across the defensive line, but he has not earned a call-up since the Gareth Southgate days. Intriguingly, there has not been a Liverpool player in any of Tuchel\u2019s last four squads.<\/p>\n<p>Jarell Quansah<\/p>\n<p>Former Liverpool defender Jarell Quansah is predominantly a centre-back but his one and only England cap to date came at right-back away to Albania in November.<\/p>\n<p>The Bayer Leverkusen star is therefore on Tuchel\u2019s radar and only withdrew from the <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/sport\/football\/england-squad-harry-maguire-kobbie-mainoo-cole-palmer-4298655?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">March squad<\/a> due to a thigh injury he has since recovered from.<\/p>\n<p>Nico O\u2019Reilly<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"507\" width=\"760\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/SEI_296914539.jpg\" alt=\"LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 31: Nico O'Reilly of England evades a challenge from Ritsu Doan of Japan during the international friendly match between England and Japan at Wembley Stadium on March 31, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Mike Hewitt\/Getty Images)\" class=\"wp-image-4415563\"  \/>Nico O\u2019Reilly is in contention to start on the left for England (Photo: Getty) <\/p>\n<p>Why not? The Pep Guardiola <a class=\"post_in-line_link\" href=\"https:\/\/inews.co.uk\/sport\/football\/man-city-win-carabao-cup-final-arsenal-4298060?ico=in-line_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">pet project of the season<\/a> has left us wondering if there is anything the Manchester City player cannot do, and though mainly a left-back \u2013 where he has started three of the last four England games \u2013 the 21-year-old would no doubt be comfortable making the switch if required.<\/p>\n<p>Djed Spence<\/p>\n<p>Also contending with O\u2019Reilly for the left-back role, Djed Spence has played both sides under Tuchel.<\/p>\n<p>The Tottenham Hotspur defender has had a niggling calf injury this year, starting infrequently for Spurs, but is probably on the World Cup plane thanks to his versatility.<\/p>\n<p>Tino Livramento<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" height=\"507\" width=\"760\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/SEI_296914533.jpg\" alt=\"LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 31: Tino Livramento of England during the international friendly match between England and Japan at Wembley Stadium on March 31, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Robin Jones\/Getty Images)\" class=\"wp-image-4415565\"  \/>Tino Livramento is also an injury doubt (Photo: Getty) <\/p>\n<p>Newcastle United right-back Tino Livramento has been plagued by injuries this season, missing more matches than he has played due to knee, hamstring and thigh problems.<\/p>\n<p>Livramento started for England against Uruguay in March, and though back in training, Newcastle boss Eddie Howe is reluctant to rush him back. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat would feel silly,\u201d Howe said. \u201cWe will let him recover and get a good summer behind him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Livramento is therefore an unknown, and should he and White miss out it could mean\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Trent Alexander-Arnold<\/p>\n<p>Enter Alexander-Arnold? He has reportedly made the 55-player cut but whether he survives the final cull \u2013 well, he certainly won\u2019t be holding his breath.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know what Trent can give us,\u201d Tuchel said after omitting Alexander-Arnold in March, and when asked what the other right-backs offer he replied: \u201cA slightly different profile.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In short: he does not fit tactically, and his only hope of going to the World Cup is if Tuchel overlooks the, arguably exaggerated, defensive frailties and sees value in taking one of England\u2019s best passers since David Beckham. Yes, I\u2019m an Alexander-Arnold fan, why do you ask?<\/p>\n<p>Ezri Konsa<\/p>\n<p>A shoo-in for the plane and perhaps even a starting role at centre-back next to Marc Guehi, Aston Villa\u2019s Ezri Konsa has played on the right for Tuchel and could make way in the centre if John Stones is preferred to partner his Manchester City teammate. <\/p>\n<p>Konsa would be a safe pair of hands at right-back, if not entirely exciting.<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"--section-color: #A1BE9A\" class=\"qa\">\n<p>Read more <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Reece James<\/p>\n<p>Few doubt Reece James is Tuchel\u2019s starting right-back of choice this summer, but plenty will have doubts over his fitness.  <\/p>\n<p>The Chelsea captain recently returned from a hamstring injury to face Liverpool on Saturday, and provided he navigates the next month without a hitch \u2013 no guarantee \u2013 he will be in the starting XI against Croatia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ben White\u2019s injury shines a light on one of England\u2019s problem positions heading into the World Cup. The&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":957268,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5008],"tags":[748,393,31425,4884,267268,8935,16,15,93214],"class_list":["post-957267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-england","tag-britain","tag-england","tag-england-football","tag-great-britain","tag-sports-explainer","tag-trent-alexander-arnold","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-world-cup-2026"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/957267","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=957267"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/957267\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/957268"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=957267"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=957267"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=957267"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}