The three big questions facing England manager Thomas Tuchel ahead of Czech Republic Nations League clash

England will look to bounce back from Saturday's 3-2 defeat to Spain when they travel to Prague to face the Czech Republic in the UEFA Nations League on Tuesday evening.

Thomas Tuchel's side showed plenty of attacking promise against the 2026 World Cup winners, but ultimately paid the price as Marc Guehi and Nico O'Reilly made costly defensive errors and Harry Kane missed a penalty.

As a result, the Three Lions are still searching for their first points of the new Nations League campaign and will be keen to produce a much-improved performance against the Czech Republic.

Here, Sports Mole looks at three of the biggest questions facing Tuchel ahead of Tuesday's contest.

How to deal with the latest injury crisis?

England have had several players withdraw from the squad due to injury during this international window and have now suffered another potential blow on the eve of the Czech Republic match.

Defenders Ezri Konsa and Nico O'Reilly both missed training on Monday after playing the full 90 minutes against Spain, with the pair following individual programmes instead.

Konsa and O'Reilly are both doubts for Tuesday's game and their potential absence causes a major headache for Tuchel.

Jarrad Branthwaite, Trevoh Chalobah and Jarell Quansah are among the options to replace Konsa, while Lewis Hall is the frontrunner to replace O'Reilly at left-back.

However, it is far from ideal for Tuchel to be dealing with yet more injury problems after five players withdrew from the original squad and only two replacements were called up.

On the flip side, it could provide a big opportunity for some of the more fringe names to step up and it will be interesting to see what changes Tuchel makes.

Should James Trafford be England's first-choice goalkeeper?

James Trafford was a surprise pick to start in goal against Spain and the 23-year-old will get another opportunity to impress against the Czech Republic.

Tuchel has confirmed Trafford will keep his place for Tuesday's match, although veteran stopper Jordan Pickford will return for the final two games of the international break.

Pickford has long been England's first-choice goalkeeper and notably broke Peter Shilton's record for the most Three Lions World Cup appearances at this year's tournament, but his place in the side looks to be under serious threat.

Trafford has started the season well for new club Leeds United and largely impressed against Spain despite conceding three goals, making some important saves and showcasing his ability with the ball at his feet.

Pickford, meanwhile, was not at his best at the World Cup and a strong showing from Trafford against the Czech Republic will leave Tuchel with a major decision to make.

Should Trent Alexander-Arnold return?

Trent Alexander-Arnold was an unused substitute against Spain, with Quansah starting ahead of him at right-back even though the Bayer Leverkusen star is primarily a centre-back.

The decision was notable given Alexander-Arnold was left out of the World Cup squad and has not played for England since June 2025, with Reece James, Tino Livramento and Ben White all currently unavailable due to injury.

It seems clear that Tuchel is not convinced by Alexander-Arnold defensively, explaining that he chose Quansah to start against Spain because of his "speed and ability to think as a central defender".

However, Tuchel could hand Alexander-Arnold a start against the Czech Republic, who were beaten 2-1 by Croatia in their opening Nations League match.

The Real Madrid star's passing range and ability to create from deep could be particularly effective against the Czech Republic and would provide Alexander-Arnold with a golden opportunity to prove his worth to Tuchel.