Charlie Wood
England manager Thomas Tuchel has named his latest squad ahead of ties against Andorra and Senegal, unveiling a mix of high-profile returns and noteworthy absences.
There was a surprise recall for Al-Ahli’s Ivan Toney. The 29-year-old has scored 22 goals in 29 games in the Saudi Pro League and will rejoin the England side for the first time since his influential role in the 2024 European Championships.
“Ivan deserves to be with us”
Tuchel said: “Ivan deserves to be with us…He won a major title with the Asian Champions League, [he] had a big involvement in the team.”
Tuchel has also provided a first senior call-up to Trevor Chalobah. The Sierra Leone-born central defender has flourished at Chelsea since returning from his loan spell at Crystal Palace, becoming a vital component of Chelsea’s defence that boasts the third-best defensive record in the league.
This call-up will offer Chalobah a timely boost ahead of his side’s Conference League Final against Real Betis on Wednesday.
The glaring omission was Manchester City’s Phil Foden. Last season’s player of the year has struggled in an out-of-sorts Pep Guardiola side.
The 24-year-old admitted: “Obviously it’s been a frustrating season for me.”
“I’ve had a lot of things going on off the pitch mentally.”
Other notable omissions include newly crowned Europa League winner Dominic Solanke, experienced centre-back Harry Maguire, and the injured Marcus Rashford.
Conor Gallagher makes his return following an impressive season at Atletico Madrid. His athleticism and intense work rate will be of service to the high-pressing, aggressive Tuchel side.
Elsewhere, Morgan Gibbs-White has been given a call-up after an impressive European-chasing season at Nottingham Forest. The attacking midfielder has been instrumental to Forest’s counter-attacking style, delivering creativity and quality in a vastly overachieving side.
Recalls were also given to Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins, who joins teammates Morgan Rogers and Ezri Konsa, and to Chelsea’s Noni Madueke – forming a strong Stamford Bridge contingent of Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill, Reece James, and the aforementioned Chalobah.
Bukayo Saka and “special and unique player” Trent Alexander-Arnold become expected returners to the team following injuries that had prevented participation in March.
“He sets the standards”
Some England fans may question the inclusion of Jordan Henderson over in-form players such as Adam Wharton, but Tuchel remained concrete in his response.
“He sets the standards. He is a natural leader and the others follow. That is why he is with us.”
With the FIFA Club World Cup commencing just four days after the international break, Tuchel offered reassurances to managers.
“Because I was in club football, we will take care of the minutes of the players if we can.”
The tournament will include captain Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich, Gallagher’s Atletico Madrid, Jude Bellingham’s Real Madrid, and a plethora of Chelsea players.
The squad travels to Andorra on 7 June for a World Cup Qualifier before returning to Wembley to face Senegal in a friendly on 10 June.
Charlie Wood
Featured image courtesy of Winston Tjia via Unsplash. Image use license found here (Unsplash). No changes were made to this image.
In article image 1 courtesy of @ivantoney1 via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
In article image 2 courtesy of @england via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
For more content including uni news, reviews, entertainment, lifestyle, features and so much more, follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and like our Facebook page for more articles and information on how to get involved.
For further sports content and ways to get involved, follow @ImpactSport on Twitter and Instagram, and like the Impact Sport Facebook page!
