Bellingham has fight to start for England - Tuchel

Thomas Tuchel says Jude Bellingham has a fight on his hands to feature in England's starting line-up at the World Cup because he has "14 or 15 potential starters" in his squad.

The Real Madrid midfielder has only started four times since the German took over as England boss in January 2025, with a further three appearances off the bench.

Tuchel has instead preferred Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers, who has featured in 12 of his 13 matches in charge and was the only player involved in each of England's eight World Cup qualifying matches.

When asked if Bellingham has a fight on his hands to be in the starting XI, Tuchel told reporters: "Yes, he has.

"He is one of the starters, he knows he is one of the starters, but we have 14 or 15 potential starters.

"These roles can always change, but at the moment I think there are 14 or 15 proper starters and Jude is one of them."

Bellingham missed just 29 minutes of England's Euro 2024 campaign, starting all seven matches, but his fortunes have changed under Gareth Southgate's replacement.

The 22-year-old missed two qualifying matches last September because of a shoulder injury but was overlooked for October's international camp, including a qualifier against Latvia.