Stick or twist? Rashford and Guehi are Tuchel's big dilemmas

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Marcus Rashford and Marc Guehi are pushing for starts against Ghana on Tuesday By Phil McNulty Chief football writer in Dallas Published 16 minutes ago England's attacking style in their opening World Cup win against Croatia in Dallas created a stir of excitement but still left head coach Thomas Tuchel with questions to ponder. Tuchel's side looked vulnerable in defence after he selected Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa ahead of Manchester City's Marc Guehi to partner John Stones. In attack, substitute Marcus Rashford scored England's final goal in the 4-2 victory after replacing new Barcelona buy Anthony Gordon, who got the nod to start on the left flank. England's World Cup campaign now moves to Boston, where they face Ghana on Tuesday, and where Tuchel must decide whether to stick or twist with his line-up. For all the bouquets thrown in England's direction, goalkeeper Jordan Pickford still needed to pull off a vital save from Igor Matanovic with the score at 3-2, before Rashford settled nerves. And those two decisions in central defence and on the left-side of England's attack look to be the biggest dilemmas facing Tuchel. What information do we collect from this quiz? Would Guehi improve England's defence? Tuchel's decision to pick Konsa while leaving out Guehi raised some eyebrows, but a glance at the German's team selections since succeeding Sir Gareth Southgate suggests this should not have been a surprise. Of England's 15 games under Tuchel, Konsa has started 10, third behind Pickford and Harry Kane, who have both started 12. He is also third in minutes played, with 933 behind Pickford (1,008) and Kane (938). Guehi has only started seven, playing 504 minutes – and it could also be noted that Tuchel was in charge at Chelsea when the 25-year-old was sold to Crystal Palace in July 2021. Konsa had moments of uncertainty, getting caught out of position when Petar Musa scored Croatia's second equaliser, but Tuchel is a huge admirer of his physical and footballing attributes, which are believed to have settled the selection. Tuchel's confidence in 32-year-old Stones, who only started five Premier League games last season before leaving Manchester City, means it looks like a straight battle between Konsa and Guehi to line up alongside him. Former England striker Chris Sutton believes Tuchel should actually pair Konsa and Guehi rather than start with Stones. He told BBC Sport: "Why is the debate Guehi for Konsa and not Stones? "I'd have Guehi and Konsa because they are the best defenders. "Don't get me wrong, John Stones has been a great player and I have huge respect for his career, but you are talking about a guy who doesn't even have a club for next season yet. "I don't think Stones has the athleticism which the other two possess. "It's nothing against John, who has been a brilliant player. He's got more composure on the ball, which he's always had, but once England get out of the group, which they wi