Thomas Tuchel has confirmed he will 'split' his latest England squad, allowing 11 players to join the camp late in order to give leading stars a mental and physical break before the business end of the club season.
The England manager explained that captain Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Morgan Rogers, Anthony Gordon, Elliott Anderson, Nico O'Reilly, Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn and Dean Henderson will miss the first friendly against Uruguay next Friday and will only join ahead of the Japan game.
'These guys have played 3,500 minutes, some 4,000 minutes this season,' Tuchel said. 'More important than the pure number of minutes is some of these guys have played more minutes than the whole of last season. All of these players have contributed in September, October and November. They have credit with me. To give them a break mentally and physically, we will benefit from it.'
Tuchel has taken a 'unique' approach by announcing an expanded 35-man squad and dividing the camp into two parts. He noted that the March camp is a crucial moment for players fighting for titles or relegation battles, but also the last opportunity to impress before the World Cup.
Regarding the No 10 position, Tuchel said Cole Palmer and Phil Foden will compete for minutes in the Uruguay game, while Jude Bellingham, Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze will be given opportunities for the Japan friendly. Bellingham, recovering from a hamstring injury, will be handled with care. 'The best case scenario is he gets some minutes against Japan,' Tuchel said, adding that England will take no risks with the midfielder.
