Jason Steele has been called up for the england world cup squad 2026 players list after Tino Livramento was injured, and Thomas Tuchel’s ranking of the squad shows how tight the margins are around England’s tournament plans. England start their 2026 campaign against Croatia on Wednesday night, with several places still tied to role competition rather than certainty.
Tuchel and Steele
Steele is viewed as about as likely to get on the pitch as the no.3 goalkeeper, which tells the story of where he sits in Tuchel’s order. Jordan Pickford is the undisputed no.1 and is expected to play in goal unless he is injured.
That leaves Steele as a replacement presence rather than a realistic minutes option. England have brought him in for Livramento, but the goalkeeper picture still runs through Pickford first, with the rest of the group waiting for a break in the plan rather than shaping it.
Quansah, Burn and Henderson
The ranking also puts Quansah in a useful but distant spot. He was a surprise inclusion after having been out of sight, out of mind to many in the Bundesliga, and he sits fifth on the list of centre-backs if Tuchel needs one.
Burn is the fourth-choice centre-back, while Quansah can cover full-back positions. Henderson is higher up the bench logic, with his best hopes of minutes described as token time in a third-place play-off, and he could be first off the bench if the no.2 on the ranking is injured.
Rice, Mainoo and the front line
Mainoo still looks a little lost in this England team, and that leaves Declan Rice in a clearer place if England do not need much of him. If they need shoring up, it will be Jordan Henderson; if they need an injection of creativity, it will be someone else too.
Up front, Watkins is thought to be Kane’s first stand-in, while Tuchel is a big fan of Toney’s aura, especially when it comes to penalties. Eze insists he will not change his stuttering run up if asked to take a penalty, but he is not in the top two picks for any position and could see serious action anywhere across the front line or deeper if England get desperate.
The wider picture is the same at full-back and behind Bukayo Saka. Tuchel sees other uses in both of his starters there, Spence’s prospects rise because of the uncertainty around those spots, Rogers has lost the battle of the no.10s, and Tuchel clearly prefers him in a central role even though he can also play wide. Saka’s stand-in is described as very clear, and the squad is being built like a squad game rather than a fixed XI.
