London (AFP) – England boss Thomas Tuchel said this month’s friendlies are the “last opportunity for players to compete for their ticket” to the World Cup but insisted “no one is on the plane” yet. Tuchel on Friday announced an extended 35-man squad for matches against Uruguay and Japan at Wembley, on March 27 and 31. Manchester United pair Harry Maguire and Kobbie Mainoo are back in the international fold, while Leeds forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin also returns.
Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham is included, even though he has not played since early February due to a hamstring injury, but there is no place for his team-mate Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luke Shaw or Ollie Watkins. Tuchel has handed a first senior call-up to Everton’s “underrated” midfielder James Garner. The players will report to camp in two stages across the international window. Among the 11 players who will skip the Uruguay match, “to give them a break mentally and physically”, are Declan Rice, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka. Others will then be released to slim the squad down to around 22 outfield players.
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“The reality of a March camp is that our players are in a crucial moment in the club football season,” the England manager told a press conference. “They fight for titles, they fight a relegation battle, they are involved in knockout matches, in cup matches, so it is a crucial moment of the season, a very stressful moment of the season for them. But it is also our last camp, the last opportunity to impress, the last opportunity for players to compete for their ticket.”
– ‘Outstanding run’ –
Tuchel has selected United players for the first time since taking the helm at the start of last year. “They have had an outstanding run since Michael Carrick took charge and Harry and Kobbie are a big part of that,” said the German. “It’s the last camp before the US, it’s the last chance also for me to get to know new players, to learn about new players.” Maguire, 33, and Mainoo, 20, last played for England in September 2024 but have been rewarded for United’s recent good form, which has lifted them to third in the Premier League.
Shaw, 30, was another United player pushing to be involved but has once again been overlooked, with Tuchel instead calling up Newcastle’s Lewis Hall for the first time since he took charge. Tuchel said the omission of former Liverpool defender Alexander-Arnold, even in the absence of injured Chelsea right-back Reece James, was a “sporting decision” but stressed his World Cup hopes were not over. “I know that it’s a tough decision for Trent, as it is for I guess Ollie Watkins at the moment and for Luke Shaw,” he said. “These tough decisions come with the job.”
Tuchel was also asked about Arsenal teenager Max Dowman, who became the youngest scorer in Premier League history last week. The England boss described the 16-year-old as a “fantastic talent” but said there was “no need to call him up now and increase the pressure and increase all the noise that comes with it”. The World Cup, taking place in Canada, Mexico and the United States, starts on June 11, with England among the favourites.
© 2024 AFP
