Thomas Tuchel has made a series of shock calls with England's squad for the World Cup, finding no space for Phil Foden and Cole Palmer, leaving out a "shocked and gutted" Harry Maguire and handing a surprise recall to Ivan Toney.
Tuchel is set to name his 26-man party for this summer's finals at Wembley on Friday morning and he spent much of Thursday evening calling players to let them know if they were in his plans.
The chosen and the forgotten: Tuchel finalises his 26-strong England World Cup squad
Maguire was the first to go public about being left out, with the defender taking to social media to express disappointment over failing to make the cut, but the most eye-catching omissions came in the attacking areas. Foden and Palmer have had underwhelming seasons for Manchester City and Chelsea respectively and their struggles meant they fell behind the other No. 10s at Tuchel's disposal. Morgan Gibbs-White, who has enjoyed a strong end to the season with Nottingham Forest, is also likely to miss out.
Tuchel has been bold with his selections and nothing is more striking than his decision to turn to Toney for the first time in 12 months. The former Brentford striker, who now plays for Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, was part of England's squad at Euro 2024 but has not made an international appearance since coming on as a substitute in the friendly defeat by Senegal last June.
It had been unclear whether Tuchel would decide to pick a conventional striker to provide cover for Harry Kane. In the event he is expected to have three strikers on the plane when England head to Florida for their pre-tournament training game on Monday week, with Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins expected to compete with Toney for minutes behind Kane. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Dominic Solanke and Danny Welbeck have not done enough.
The situation with the strikers will have an impact on Tuchel's creative players. Foden, who has been to the past three tournaments, has not been a regular for City this season and has struggled to produce his best form for England. His omission raises major doubts over his international future but does not come as a surprise.
There was more optimism around Palmer, who scored when England lost to Spain in the Euro 2024 final. Yet the 24-year-old has had an injury-hit season and did not impress against Japan in March. The No. 10 slots will be filled by Jude Bellingham, Eberechi Eze and Morgan Rogers. Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke are expected to edge out Jarrod Bowen on the right, with Marcus Rashford and Anthony Gordon preferred to Harvey Barnes on the left.
Tuchel's selections will cause plenty of debate. Maguire has won 66 caps and missed the last Euros with a calf injury but he has enjoyed a resurgence this season and was stunned to be left out. "I was confident I could have played a major part this summer for my country after the season I've had," the Manchester United defender posted on social media. "I've been left shocked and gutted by the decision. I've loved nothing more than putting that shirt on and representing my country over the years. I wish the players all the best this summer."
Probable England World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), James Trafford (Manchester City)
Defenders: Reece James (Chelsea), Tino Livramento (Newcastle), John Stones (Manchester City), Marc Guéhi (Manchester City), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Dan Burn (Newcastle), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Nico O'Reilly (Manchester City)
Midfielders: Jordan Henderson (Brentford), Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), James Garner (Everton), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa)
Forwards: Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Noni Madueke (Arsenal), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Marcus Rashford (Barcelona), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Ivan Toney (Al-Ahli)
Maguire's mum, Zoe, responded to the post, writing: "You couldn't have done any more. Hold your head high ... Disgraceful." She added: "Absolute disgusted" in a separate social media post.
Tuchel is instead set to turn to Marc Guéhi, Dan Burn, Ezri Konsa, Jarell Quansah and John Stones as his centre-backs. Levi Colwill, the Chelsea centre-back, has not been included after returning from a long-term knee injury. There is also no place for Chelsea's Trevoh Chalobah. Luke Shaw, the United left-back, has not been picked.
Tino Livramento, who can play at left-back and right-back, is in Tuchel's thoughts despite being out with a thigh injury. Nico O'Reilly is set to be first choice at left-back. Arsenal's Myles Lewis-Skelly might have timed his run too late. There were whispers of an unlikely reprieve for Trent Alexander-Arnold, who has not been picked by Tuchel since last June, although Everton's James Garner is in contention because of his ability to play in midfield and at right-back. Fitness concerns are likely to have come into Tuchel's thinking. Stones has made four appearances since Christmas and Livramento and James have had injury issues. Lewis Hall and Djed Spence are facing disappointment.
There was also bad news for the Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton, who has not been able to convince Tuchel of his worth. Kobbie Mainoo, a key player at the last Euros, has dislodged Wharton after winning back his place at United. Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson will be the starting duo in midfield and Jordan Henderson will provide experienced cover. Bournemouth's Alex Scott misses out.
Tuchel, who is heading to his first international tournament, will confirm his picks in an interview on the official England app this morning. The former Chelsea manager will also hold a press conference at Wembley.
England will head to Canada, Mexico and the US as one of the favourites to win the World Cup. They had near misses under Gareth Southgate and hired Tuchel, who has extended his contract to take in Euro 2028, to get them over the line. England will play warm-up friendlies against New Zealand in Tampa on 6 June and Costa Rica in Orlando on 10 June. They will then be based in Kansas City and open their tournament by flying to Dallas to face Croatia in Group L on 17 June.
