Gary Neville has been discussing Chelsea’s Reece James and Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold after Thomas Tuchel’s decision to omit the latter from his England squad.
Tuchel sent shockwaves by leaving out the likes of Alexander-Arnold and James’ Chelsea teammate Cole Palmer.
James is now expected to be England’s starting right-back at the World Cup, with Neville feeling that he possesses something that Alexander-Arnold does not have.
Xabi Alonso has his SEVEN Chelsea ‘untouchables’ 👀
Do you agree with them?
- Reece James
- Cole Palmer
- Joao Pedro
- Estevao Willian
- Moises Caicedo
- Josh Acheampong
- Levi Colwill
Gary Neville claims Trent Alexander-Arnold doesn’t have the same running power as Chelsea captain Reece James
When people discuss Alexander-Arnold and James, they normally compare their defending, with many believing that the latter is the superior one-v-one defender.
However, Neville has picked up on something else: their running. According to the former Manchester United captain, James possesses much more power than his Real Madrid counterpart.
Speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents, he said: “Reece James is a bit of a blend of Kyle [Walker] and Trent in the sense he’s got the actual delivery, but he’s also got the sort of power in his running that Trent’s not got.
“I think the fact that Kieran Trippier played games in front of him and now Djed Spence or [Tino] Livramento or [Ezri] Konsa, that must be really, really tough for him now because I think you can live with Reece James and and Kyle because they’re two exceptional full-backs, you know Reece when he’s fit.
“But I think now when you’ve got Konsa playing in front of you and Livramento, I think they’re really solid good players, but this is not Gareth Southgate, it’s Thomas Tuchel. And you start to ask the question, are they both wrong?”
While Tuchel surprised a lot of people by leaving Alexander-Arnold at home, James’ inclusion was not a shock.
The 26-year-old is fully fit again and thrived under Tuchel when the German was Chelsea manager. James has already impressed the English media with his performance in the Three Lions’ friendly win against New Zealand.
Reece James’ stats vs New Zealand
James only played 45 minutes against New Zealand, coming on in the second half. However, he still managed to make an impact.
As per Sofascore, the Chelsea star completed one key pass and attempted five crosses. As usual, he carried a threat going forward.
James also managed to make one tackle and win two ground duels. Again, there is no doubt that he will be England’s first-choice right-back at the World Cup.
As for when he returns to Chelsea, James could always end up on the right side of central defence if Xabi Alonso decides to use a back three.
Alexander-Arnold is a terrific footballer, but Chelsea supporters would not swap James for him. Tuchel clearly would not either after taking James to the World Cup while leaving Alexander-Arnold in Madrid.
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