Peter Crouch backs Thomas Tuchel's 'wildcard pick' for World Cup despite fan criticism

Peter Crouch agrees with Thomas Tuchel's controversial decision to include a 'wildcard' player in England's World Cup squad.

In less than two weeks, the 2026 World Cup will be well underway as a record 48 teams compete for the biggest trophy in football.

The major tournament will be England's first under Tuchel, who replaced Gareth Southgate as manager in the months following the Three Lions' loss to Spain in the Euro 2024 final.

Ahead of England's upcoming friendlies against New Zealand and Costa Rica, Tuchel named the 26-man squad that would be travelling to North America for the World Cup.

Several big names missed out as Tuchel chose to focus on '100% committed players,' leaving the likes of Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Harry Maguire and several others behind.

Meanwhile, others questioned the inclusion of other players who made the cut, with former Brentford striker Ivan Toney perhaps being the biggest surprise in Tuchel's plans.

The 30-year-old, who currently plays for Saudi Pro League club Al Ahli, has only played two minutes under Tuchel to date.

However, former England striker and Paddy Power ambassador Peter Crouch is backing Tuchel's selection and believes a 'wildcard' pick like Toney could prove to be a golden opportunity both for the player and England.

"I don't mind it. Alternative players? I think it's an interesting squad, I don't think he is worried about any noise outside of the squad that he wants to pick, and I like that," Crouch said in an exclusive interview with SPORTbible.

"I think that's what's good about foreign managers, I don't think they're swayed by anything other than their own judgment."

He continued: "Toney is the interesting one, because obviously he's barely picked him until now. Where's that come from? It's come from kind of nowhere.

"But I actually said to a couple of my mates recently, ‘take Toney’. He's banged in 32 and 32 in the Saudi league. I know it's not one of the top leagues, let’s not dress it up, but he's still scoring goals and is full of confidence.

"As long as his fitness is good, he's brilliant at penalties and he's proven in big tournaments that he can handle the pressure. Important goals, important penalties and pressure moments for us already.

"It’s a bit of a wild card, but sometimes those wild cards come off. It’s a massive opportunity for him and the manager to show how good they are."

Toney's inclusion came at the expense of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Danny Welbeck, who have both impressed with Leeds United and Brighton respectively this season.

But with Kane the clear option to start up front, Crouch isn't concerned about England's striker options, and believes that Tuchel will know exactly what he's doing with the European Golden Shoe winner.

"Let's be honest, the calibre of centre-forward in the country, Harry Kane's just light years ahead of everyone, isn't he?" Crouch claimed.

"Watkins has had a bit of an up-and-down season, but at least he finished it strongly. And Toney, I think, is probably the best of the rest. I think if he was still playing the Premier League he’d be a shoo-in.

"Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Danny Welbeck, they’ve been great players over the years, but I don’t put them any higher than Ivan Toney other than the fact that he’s out of sight and out of mind.

"I’ve been on the same pitch on him and played with him and think he’s a top-level player."

Peter Crouch on England's chances of winning the World Cup

England were drawn into Group L and will begin their World Cup campaign against Croatia on June 17 at the AT&T Stadium before facing Ghana on June 23 and Panama on June 27.

The World Cup draw means that England cannot meet favourites Spain or current holders Argentina until the semis or France until the final, should all four countries win their respective groups.

Instead, England's road to the final will likely see them face Senegal in the round of 32 before meeting with hosts Mexico in the round of 16 and Brazil in the quarter-finals.

Under the leadership of Tuchel, confidence amongst England fans appears to be high, as they hope to see the German manager finally bring a major trophy back to England for the first time in 80 years.

However, Crouch doesn't share this sense of optimism and, despite the wealth of talent in the squad, believes that there are at least four teams that could prove to be the Three Lions' undoing.

"I think we'll do well. I don't think we’ll win it, but we can win it. I think we've got a good enough team to get to the final, but Spain look good, France potentially, one of the South American teams like a Brazil or Argentina will be there or thereabouts," he said.

Peter Crouch features in the new Paddy Power World Cup ad poking fun at US football fan culture alongside nation’s sweetheart Danny Dyer and Hollywood film star Rob Lowe. Watch the full ad here.