Harry Maguire has described his FaceTime call with Thomas Tuchel as 'awkward' after being left out of England's World Cup squad. The Manchester United defender was one of the surprise omissions from the 26-man selection, prompting an emotional social media post.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, Maguire said: 'He FaceTimes everyone. It's quite an awkward call. Something got released in the media about half an hour before I got told that my place was in doubt. That was the most frustrating thing.'
Maguire, 33, admitted he was 'shocked and gutted' by the decision, having felt his form for United warranted a place. 'I thought I did enough to be in the squad. I'd have been happy to play one minute, as long as I was there with the lads,' he added.
Tuchel later said he was 'a bit surprised' by Maguire's social media reaction, but respected his personality. The England boss explained he stuck with the defenders who carried the team through the autumn qualifying campaign.
