Reece James faces race to recover from hamstring injury in time for England's World Cup last-32 tie

Reece James is set to miss England’s final World Cup group game against Panama at the MetLife Stadium on Saturday and faces a race to be fit for their last-32 knockout tie after suffering a hamstring injury.

The Chelsea captain has started both of England’s matches so far — a win over Croatia and a draw with Ghana — but his latest setback compounds Thomas Tuchel’s problems at right-back. Tino Livramento was already ruled out of the tournament entirely, and Tuchel chose not to select Trent Alexander-Arnold, either in his initial squad or as a replacement for Livramento, instead calling up Chelsea centre-back Trevoh Chalobah.

Djed Spence, Ezri Konsa and Jarell Quansah are the most likely candidates to fill in against Panama in New York.

James has managed only 26 caps across a career repeatedly disrupted by injury. He missed eight weeks between March and May this season with a hamstring strain before returning at the end of the campaign, making his latest setback a familiar and frustrating pattern.

Speaking before the tournament, James pushed back on the narrative surrounding his fitness record. “I have one job, which is to be the best I can when I’m on the pitch,” he told BBC 5 Live. “To be honest, I understand the stigma at the start, but after a while it gets boring. I’ve been fit for a long time before my last injury, and I don’t listen to too much noise. People always talk about injuries and availability, and to me it’s so boring now.”

With England needing to navigate the knockout rounds, the timing of the injury leaves Tuchel short of natural options in a position that was already a concern before the squad was named.