With Rice having withdrawn from the squad, Bournemouth's Scott featured in midfield alongside Elliot Anderson for the Nations League match, and the pair dictated play despite being up against Croatian veterans Luka Modric and Mateo Kovacic.
When asked if Arsenal's Rice might be worried about his place in the team, Tuchel told reporters: "Of course, and he does, we need performances like this.
"This is just the nature of it. We will not survive on two central midfielders.
"Declan knows about his importance, and he's one of the very best midfielders in Europe.
"Nothing will change that. But it's exactly what we need. We need more, more, more, more variety. We need more, more, more options. Then it's always about the guys who are in camp. Alex was in the highest level."
England, second in their group behind World Cup winners Spain, host the Czech Republic at Wembley on Tuesday.
UEFA Nations League
The UEFA Nations League 2026/27 is contested by the national teams of 54 of UEFA's member associations. They're divided into four leagues based on the rankings of the previous edition, with Leagues A, B, and C featuring sixteen teams each, divided into four groups of four, while League D features six teams divided into two groups of three. It begins in September 2026, with the finals in June 2027.
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