Butt Backs Tuchel to Drop Bellingham for Rogers

Nicky Butt has never been one for soft edges or polite caveats. So when he looks at England’s 2026 World Cup prospects under Thomas Tuchel, he sees a manager ready to swing the axe on reputation – and a young playmaker poised to take full advantage.

At the heart of his prediction is a bold claim: Morgan Rogers could force Jude Bellingham out of England’s starting XI if the Real Madrid midfielder stumbles early in the tournament.

Bellingham’s bruising build‑up

Bellingham arrives at the World Cup with the kind of season that leaves a mark. Shoulder problems, then a hamstring injury, cut into his rhythm and his influence. He still clocked 40 appearances in all competitions for Real Madrid, starting 30 of them, but the campaign never quite felt smooth.

He remains one of the faces of this England side. Butt still groups him with Harry Kane, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka as the established superstars. Yet he’s convinced Tuchel will not hesitate to pull one of those names out of the firing line if form deserts them.

“It’ll depend on how Jude Bellingham starts the tournament,” Butt said, speaking to Paddy Power. If Bellingham is “on fire”, the picture changes. If not? The door opens.

Rogers on the rise

Rogers is the player Butt sees walking through it.

The Aston Villa playmaker heads to the World Cup on the crest of a breakthrough season. Unai Emery’s side lifted the Europa League and finished fourth in the Premier League, with Rogers central to that surge. At 23, he produced 13 goals and 11 assists across those two competitions – numbers that demand attention rather than politely request it.

His standing with England is growing just as quickly. Since his debut in 2024, Rogers has featured in 13 of the national team’s 14 matches. That’s not fringe territory. That’s a manager testing a player he trusts.

For Butt, the fit with Tuchel is obvious. Rogers, he says, is a “Tuchel kind of player” in that No 10 role – someone who can drift into pockets, link play and, crucially, strike from distance. Butt pointed out how many World Cup goals arrive from outside the box when defences retreat and clog the penalty area. Rogers, in his eyes, is built for exactly that scenario.

The X-factor off the bench

Butt sees more than tidy link play and tactical flexibility. He sees a potential tournament match-winner.

“I think Rogers has got the X-factor,” he said. The season told that story in miniature: a blistering start, a dip, then a strong finish as he “came again” when it mattered most.

Butt can easily imagine the script this summer – Rogers starting on the bench, then altering games in short, sharp bursts. A goal here, a decisive moment there. The kind of cameos that tilt tight knockout ties and turn a promising squad player into a national obsession.

“I’ve got a sneaking feeling that he could come off the bench a few times and score some really important goals,” Butt said. “He could be the difference in a lot of games.”

For now, Butt expects the starting XI to “pick itself”, with Rogers watching the opening whistle. The key variable, in his view, is Bellingham’s form. If the Madrid midfielder “isn’t flying”, Butt is adamant Tuchel will not hide behind status.

“One thing about Tuchel is that he doesn’t give a f*ck about player egos or the perception,” Butt said. Should Bellingham struggle, he believes Tuchel will “take him out of the firing line and put Rogers straight in”.

From there, Butt can see the narrative exploding: a player who arrives as a bit-part option, leaving as England’s standout performer. “You could then see someone who could become England’s best player in the tournament, he’s got that much ability,” he said. History is full of those sudden ascents. Butt clearly thinks Rogers has the tools to be the next.

Doubts over England – and pressure on Tuchel

For all his enthusiasm about Rogers, Butt is far less bullish about England’s overall chances.

He sees a young squad, a brutal environment and a nation that will demand more than the conditions might realistically allow. In his eyes, reaching the latter stages – semi-final or final – would count as success. He also suspects a semi-final exit could still be painted as failure back home.

“I can’t see us winning it,” he admitted, pointing to the heat, humidity and heavy travel schedule. Those factors, he feels, drag down even the strongest squads. The prospect of facing Mexico in Mexico City in the last 16 only underlines his concern.

A group-stage exit would be an obvious disaster. But Butt believes anything short of the semi-finals will trigger a wider inquest, especially given the players left behind. Tuchel has omitted Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Harry Maguire and Trent Alexander-Arnold, all high-profile names, even if they arrive out of form. If England fall early, Butt is certain the spotlight will swing straight at the manager.

“If that happens I think he’d be gone,” he said. Not just from The FA’s perspective, but from Tuchel’s own ambitions. Butt sees him as a coach wired for the day-to-day intensity of club football, not the long gaps and limited contact of the international game.

The England job, he acknowledges, is “one of the biggest jobs in the world”. But if this World Cup ends badly, Butt expects both sides to decide the experiment has run its course.

Brazil, Argentina, Spain – and a brutal landscape

When he looks beyond England, Butt’s gaze settles on familiar shirts.

He keeps coming back to Brazil and Argentina as the teams to beat, even if Brazil no longer boasts the galáctico roll call of Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Roberto Carlos. The names have changed, the aura lessened, but in the conditions on offer, Butt still sees them as natural contenders.

Spain, he says, should also sit near the top of any list. Used to the heat, backed by a strong travelling support, technically secure – they look built to navigate the climate and the tempo.

“It’d be crazy not to look at Brazil or Argentina as favourites,” Butt said, before adding Spain as the side that can “handle the hit” and stay “there or thereabouts”.

England, in his mind, stand a rung below that trio, fighting the elements as much as the opposition.

Between those doubts and his belief in Tuchel’s ruthlessness, one storyline refuses to go away: a young Aston Villa playmaker, trusted by his club, increasingly trusted by his country, waiting for his chance.

If Bellingham falters and Tuchel really is as cold-eyed as Butt insists, Morgan Rogers won’t just be part of the conversation.

He might end up defining England’s World Cup.