Thomas Tuchel faces a selection crisis with England's right-back curse striking again ahead of the World Cup knockout stages. But would Bellingham bail England out again? We turned to EA FC 26 to predict the result against DR Congo17:00, 30 Jun 2026After a barnstorming start to their World Cup campaign against Croatia, it’s safe to say that England have rather stuttered since their Group L opener. However, the Three Lions won two out of three Group Stage matches, remain unbeaten and topped their group - so it’s not all bad.‌But we are now in the knockout stages of the 2026 World Cup. England cannot afford to be as unconvicing as they were against Panama and Ghana if they truly want their World Cup dreams to come true.‌Next up for Thomas Tuchel’s England is DR Congo, who finished as the highest-ranked third place side at the end of the group games. Having nicked a point from Portugal, Tuchel’s men underestimate Congo at their peril.‌Hopefully, we will see the swashbuckling, unshackled England glimpsed against Croatia during the 4-2 win two weeks ago. Or will it be the nervy, relatively toothless side that were frustrated by Congo’s fellow Africans, Ghana?Once again, we took to EA Sports FC 26 to try and predict the score.England lineup‌There has been plenty of talk since the 2-0 win over Panama regarding the ‘right-back curse’. Jarrell Quansah’s injury in that match makes him the third in that position to be struck down following Tino Livramento’s exit from the tournament before it began and Reece James’ latest in a long line of injury problems.So what now for Tuchel? Our simulation expected him to choose the slightly less-trusted Djed Spence ahead of moving Ezri Konsa or Trevoh Chalobah out of position.It also predicted a return to the starting line-up for Declan Rice in midfield, and for Marcus Rashford to keep his place out wide following a promising performance against Panama. The only other decision of note was that John Stones replaced Konsa to partner Marc Guehi at centre-back.‌England simulated starting XI v DR Congo: Jordan Pickford; Djed Spence, Marc Guehi, John Stones, Nico O’Reilly; Elliot Anderson, Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham; Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford, Harry Kane.England v DR Congo World Cup Second Round simulated by EA Sports FC 26If this simulation was trying to give a definitive answer as to which of England’s two sides - the pulsating, bravado attacking force or the jittery, raw impatience against defiant opposition - then it came to the conclusion that this England side is simply both and we have to live with it.Why? Because after 18 minutes of no real action, a lapse at the back allowed Samuel Moutousssamy to creep into the box, fire off a weak shot that was spilled by Jordan Pickford, and stretch beyond Stones to score the rebound.‌Congo had a shock 1-0 lead in the opening quarter, and England trailed for the first time at this World Cup. However, hope came from an unlikely source 10 minutes later.It was not the brilliance of Jude Bellingham or the reliability of captain Harry Kane that dragged England level. Instead, it was the bravery of Eliot Anderson to turn his defender and smash home from 12 yards out.‌Anderson was the hero again when he scored a second on 38 minutes, having been played in nicely by his skipper. A 2-1 lead, and England had their confidence back.Three minutes before half-time, Aaron Wan-Bissaka was punished for a handball when his former Manchester United teammate Rashford attempted to dribble past him. The resulting penalty was leathered into the top-left corner by Kane, as Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi went the wrong way.A 3-1 half-time lead was a good place for England to be, but it was only due to get better. After volleying a corner at the outstretched arm of Arthur Masuaku, Kane dispatched a second spot-kick on 50 minutes to make it 4-1.‌The goals kept coming, as Bellingham thumped an effort home on 58 minutes well beyond Mpasi to give England a commanding 5-1 lead and surely ensure safe passage into the Last 16. With the result safe, Tuchel chose to bring Spence off for Konsa 10 minutes later, presumably to rest his only fit right-back for the latter stages of the tournament.Bellingham became the third man to grab a brace for England in this match with a powerful strike set up masterfully by Kane after 71 minutes. Once stoppage time came around, Rashford capped off the display with a clever run and a thunderous finish.Article continues belowIt ended up a resounding 7-1 win, sending an emphatic statement to the rest of the World Cup contenders. If this happens in reality in Atlanta, England fans will be in dreamland.But our simulation predicted an identical 7-1 England win against Panama - an encounter which proved far tighter in reality. At this stage of the tournament, we would all gladly trade the goal-fest for a simple, injury-free win.