Thomas Tuchel backs England’s defence before Czechia match despite Spain errors

Thomas Tuchel intends to avoid sweeping changes to England’s defence for Tuesday’s Nations League match in Czechia, saying individual mistakes in the 3-2 defeat by Spain did not reveal a recurring problem with how his team defends. His position matters because England travel to Prague after losing their group opener and, according to the Guardian, going six matches without a clean sheet.

Speaking before the match, Tuchel stood by Marc Guéhi and Nico O’Reilly after both lost possession in dangerous areas before Spain goals, the Guardian reported. He said he would not drop a player solely for one mistake when that player had performed well in other games. That leaves room for changes forced by fitness, but his stated response to Saturday’s defeat was continuity rather than a wholesale reset.

What Tuchel saw against Spain

‘I didn’t see a pattern,’ Tuchel told the Guardian. ‘It was individual mistakes.’ He said England had defended well as an organised unit and had been more disciplined and cohesive than in some World Cup matches. In his assessment, the bigger danger came when England had the ball near their own penalty area and gave it away. ‘Purely in defending, I have no concerns,’ he said.

That distinction does not make the errors immaterial. The Guardian linked two of Spain’s goals to Guéhi and O’Reilly losing the ball in dangerous positions, and Tuchel said England needed to improve that part of their play. His argument was that those moments should be addressed without treating them as proof that the defensive structure itself had failed.

A lead lost at Wembley

Spain struck inside two minutes through Lamine Yamal, according to UEFA’s match report. Anthony Gordon and Harry Kane then scored to put England 2-1 ahead at half-time. Kane hit the crossbar with a penalty after the break, Álex Baena equalised and Mikel Oyarzabal scored the winner for a 3-2 Spain victory. The sequence explains why England could point to attacking success while still confronting a defeat marked by costly errors.

Tuchel told England Football that Gordon’s counterattacking goal had been ‘amazing’. He also praised England’s effort without the ball and said his players had won possession in Spain’s half more often than Spain had in England’s. Yet he said those gains had not produced enough chances and goals. His post-match comments therefore addressed problems at both ends rather than placing the entire result on the back four.

The clean-sheet record sharpens the scrutiny. The Guardian reported that England had conceded in six consecutive games before the Czechia fixture. Tuchel’s answer was to separate the run of goals conceded from what he said he saw in the team’s organised defensive phases against Spain. Whether England can avoid another lapse in Prague remains an open question until the match is played.

Injury doubts and selection options

Continuity may still depend on who is fit. The Guardian reported that O’Reilly and Ezri Konsa were injury doubts before the Czechia game. It said Lewis Hall was in line to replace O’Reilly at left-back, while Trevoh Chalobah could challenge Jarrad Branthwaite to partner Guéhi in central defence if Konsa could not play. Those were reported options, not a confirmed starting lineup or a final medical update.

Trent Alexander-Arnold is another available option on the right, according to the Guardian. He was an unused substitute against Spain, and Tuchel said the defender had trained well and was ‘ready to go’. The report said Alexander-Arnold had not won an England cap since June 2025. Tuchel’s comments establish his readiness in the coach’s view; they do not establish that he will start against Czechia.

Tuchel also told the Guardian that James Trafford would continue in goal for England’s first two Nations League games while the staff assessed him at this level. He said Jordan Pickford, England’s established first-choice goalkeeper, would return for the trip to Croatia and the subsequent home game against Czechia. Tuchel framed Trafford’s opportunity as a chance to learn about another goalkeeper, rather than a response to Pickford’s performances.

The next group test

England’s fixture schedule lists the away match against Czechia for Tuesday 29 September at 7.45pm BST. The sides are in League A, Group 3, alongside Spain and Croatia. England are due to visit Croatia on 3 October and host Czechia on 6 October, giving Tuchel another meeting with Tuesday’s opponents soon after the Prague game.

Czechia also enter the match after an opening defeat. UEFA recorded a 2-1 home loss to Croatia on Saturday: Luka Modrić put Croatia ahead, Adam Karabec equalised and Marco Pašalić headed the winner. Both teams are therefore seeking their first points of this Nations League group, while England must decide how much to change from the side beaten at Wembley.

The immediate unresolved questions are practical ones: whether O’Reilly and Konsa are fit, which defenders Tuchel selects, and whether England can avoid the possession errors he identified against Spain. His public assessment is clear, however. He sees a need to correct individual decisions on the ball, while retaining confidence in the team’s defensive organisation.