Thomas Tuchel has left Cole Palmer out of his England squad for the November international break, a decision that has sparked debate among supporters. The Chelsea forward was the biggest question mark heading into Friday's squad announcement, but the head coach opted to leave him at home despite a strong start to the Premier League season.
Palmer has not played for his country since before the World Cup, having been omitted by Tuchel in the summer. He was handed a lifeline in the first international break since that tournament but pulled out due to fitness issues.
Missed Opportunities
At the time, Tuchel described Palmer's absence as a "missed opportunity", and the punishment is that Palmer will spend the break at home. "For sure it's a missed opportunity [for Palmer]," Tuchel said after Palmer withdrew in September. "It's another missed opportunity. He misses too many opportunities, and I don't blame him for it. It's just the fact. He misses way too many camps with injuries and I only want to rely on what I personally witness and what I see within my team, and for that you have to be in camp."
"If you're not in camp, there's a next level to impress that you cannot achieve because you only can do it when you're actually with me on the pitch and with us on the pitch so, yeah, it is a missed opportunity."
New Faces in the Squad
Tuchel has selected a pair of brothers in Jude and Jobe Bellingham, with the latter handed his first call-up. Fulham's Josh King is also in the squad for the first time, while Eberechi Eze and Morgan Gibbs-White have been preferred to Palmer.
The England squad in full includes goalkeepers Jordan Pickford (Everton), James Trafford (Leeds United) and Jason Steele (Brighton). Defenders are Ezri Konsa (Arsenal), Marc Guehi (Man City), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United), Jarrell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Djed Spence (Inter Milan) and Ben White (Arsenal).
Midfielders selected are Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Jobe Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Josh King (Fulham), James Garner (Everton), Elliot Anderson (Man City), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal) and Declan Rice (Arsenal).
Forwards include Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Anthony Gordon (Barcelona), Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool) and Morgan Rogers (Chelsea).
