England's Right-Back Dilemma: Waddle Suggests Henderson Solution
England have reached the World Cup knockout rounds with momentum on the scoreboard and doubt on the teamsheet.
Thomas Tuchel’s side head into a hostile last‑16 clash with co-hosts Mexico in the early hours of Monday morning, kicking off at 1am UK time in the vast Mexico City Stadium. They arrive there thanks to Harry Kane’s late heroics in a fraught 2-1 victory over DR Congo in the round of 32 – a result that steadied nerves but did little to settle one of the biggest questions of England’s campaign.
Who plays right-back?
Injury chaos on the right
Tuchel’s plans on that flank have been shredded.
Tino Livramento never made it to the pitch in North America, ruled out before the tournament truly began. Once the games started, Reece James and Jarell Quansah followed him onto the treatment table. Now even Djed Spence, the man who started at right-back against DR Congo, is a doubt for the meeting with Mexico, according to reports.
For a squad that prides itself on depth, one position suddenly looks painfully thin.
That reality has sharpened the focus on the decision to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold at home. The Real Madrid full-back, once a club team-mate of Quansah at Liverpool, seemed a logical option for a tournament that always throws up tactical puzzles and injury storms. Tuchel opted against him.
Not everyone believes that was a mistake.
Waddle backs Alexander-Arnold snub – and offers a solution
Chris Waddle, a key figure in England’s run to the semi-finals of Italia ’90, has backed Tuchel’s call to omit Alexander-Arnold – and has pointed the manager towards another Liverpool favourite as an emergency fix.
“Alexander-Arnold played 30 games last season and didn’t complete enough games – so no, I wouldn't say that it was a mistake to leave him behind,” Waddle said, speaking to 10bet.
“If you are going to pick him, you pick him for his quality and what he gives you, then that's fine – I understand that.”
The former winger’s main concern lies elsewhere: in the gamble England took on the fitness of their specialist right-backs.
“We knew Reece James is – unfortunately, he's a top player – but he's always injured, as is Tino Livramento,” Waddle said. “So looking at the squad straight away, you had to put a question mark over their injuries. They are injured a lot, unfortunately, and the one thing you want when you go to a tournament is a healthy squad. You've got to have players who are fit.
“When you look at the injury records of Livramento and James, they do miss a lot of football matches. So maybe taking two right-backs who are constantly injured was a risk, and the manager should have probably looked at that. As players, their quality is undeniable – they're very good players and I like them, but their track record of being injured was a red alert for me.”
With the specialist options dwindling, Waddle’s answer is simple and unconventional in equal measure: Jordan Henderson.
“Play a midfielder there” – the Henderson and Rice argument
England have dominated large spells of their matches so far, often camped in the opposition half. Waddle believes that pattern should shape Tuchel’s solution.
“But listen, with the way we play, we dominate football matches,” he said. “It’s not until we play France, Spain, or Argentina – someone of that quality – where you're going to be under real pressure. Against the teams we are playing now, he could play Jordan Henderson at right-back.
“Tell me who has got a great winger or who plays on the front foot against England? It’s all counter-attacking, so you may as well have a passer of the ball back there. There's no reason Jordan Henderson can't play at right-back.”
On paper, it would be a bold move. Henderson has barely featured at this World Cup, restricted to just six minutes of action. Throwing the veteran into an unfamiliar role against a Mexico side boasting a 100% record and yet to concede a goal would raise eyebrows.
Yet Tuchel has already shown a willingness to improvise. Declan Rice shifted to right-back during the win over DR Congo, offering a glimpse of a different way to manage the crisis.
Waddle would go further.
“If you look at the rest of the squad, I know he has played Jarrel Quansah there, but why not play a midfield player there?” he said. “Play Declan Rice there and put a creative midfield player in the centre instead. Put Eberechi Eze alongside Elliot Anderson, and say to them, 'look, I want you to pass. If you see a 30-, 40-, or 50-yard pass, I want you to hit it'. That is how we're going to score more goals and get the wingers into the game.
“Because at the minute, you've got two midfield players who are exactly the same, and it’s all 10-yard passes. By the time the ball shuffles out to the wing, it’s too late. You want somebody in the middle of the park who's brave, who wants to get on the ball and distribute it long-range.”
The message is clear: if England are going to dominate the ball, use that dominance. Turn the right-back slot into a playmaking position rather than a purely defensive one.
“Personally, I'd put Jordan Henderson at right-back,” Waddle added. “He's good on the ball and he's economical. He doesn't have to fly on the overlap or bomb forward. We just want somebody who can play as a right-back, get the ball, control it, and pass it, because I've not seen any team go full throttle at England yet.”
A defining call for Tuchel
Tuchel now stands on the brink of a defining tactical call. Stick with a makeshift defender. Drop Rice back again and reshape the midfield. Or trust a 34-year-old Henderson to patrol a flank in a World Cup knockout tie at altitude against a confident, perfect-record Mexico.
England have the platform after Kane’s late rescue act against DR Congo. Whether they have the right balance on that vulnerable right side will go a long way to deciding if this campaign becomes another tale of what-ifs – or the moment a risky selection call turns into a World Cup masterstroke.
