If England fans have learned one thing about Thomas Tuchel across his 18 months in charge, it is that he likes to keep us on our toes.Ahead of their opening World Cup game against Croatia this evening, the key debate is whether Ezri Konsa or Marc Guehi should start alongside John Stones in the heart of the England defence.Partnerships can blossom over the course of what England hope will become an eight-game tournament. But if Konsa were to start alongside Stones — both players who have tended to play right-sided centre-back roles for their respective clubs — it would be a surprise given Guehi’s vast experience and ability on the opposite side.Tuchel clearly trusts Stones, despite his lack of game time last season. He played just 330 minutes in 2026 for City before his exit was confirmed in the summer, but England’s coaches have pored over his training data and are convinced of his fitness. “He knows how to adapt to a winning culture,” Tuchel added as he announced his squad back in May. “He is still on the highest level when I see him play.”What’s more, Stones’ two-footed technical ability, able to step up into midfield and help to dictate the build-up play, means that Tuchel trusts him to play on either side. He has played alongside Konsa as the left centre-back on four occasions under the German manager, and with Guehi, on the right, three times.Clearly, Tuchel has no issues when it comes to tweaking his centre-back pairing. So with Stones seemingly settled, who should take the second place?One way to compare the competing parties at a glance is to use The Athletic’s player-style pizza chart. The visualisation below uses Opta data to create bespoke metrics that help to highlight how each player approaches the game compared to their positional peers.Straight away, Konsa stands out for his ball retention ability. No player in the Premier League maintained a higher average passing accuracy than the 28-year-old (95.5 per cent) last season, while he has only made 13 errors leading to shots across his seven-year Premier League career, or around one every 17 games.