Thomas Tuchel has called on England fans to stop booing Ben White after the Arsenal defender was again targeted by supporters during the Nations League match against Croatia at Wembley on Thursday evening.
White was audibly booed as he replaced Trent Alexander-Arnold in the 78th minute, repeating the reception he received when he last played for England during the international break in March. The animosity from fans dates back to late 2022, when White left the World Cup squad midway through the tournament in Qatar for personal reasons. He did not play again for the Three Lions during Gareth Southgate's time as manager.
Return to the squad
White ended his four-year England exile in March, when Tuchel called him up for friendlies against Uruguay and Japan, but he was greeted with boos in both games. Injury prevented White from selection for the 2026 World Cup, but Tuchel saw no issue with bringing him back into the squad for this month's fixtures against Croatia and Spain.
Earlier this week, White said supporters would not boo him if they knew the full story behind his abrupt exit from the World Cup. As he was introduced against Croatia, boos could be heard from portions of the England support.
Tuchel's response
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Tuchel said: "I didn't hear the boos, to be honest. I heard the claps for Luka Modric, which is nice, because he deserves it. He's a legend of the game, but I honestly didn't hear the boos for Ben, and I thought we were past that."
Tuchel agreed when asked if he hoped England supporters would not boo White the next time he plays, and said he could only judge the defender on what he had seen since taking charge. He added: "Yeah, I hope it doesn't happen again. He's a player of us. Since I'm in charge, he's desperate to come and to be with the group. Since I'm in charge, I can only judge him on what I see and what I experience, and he's on the highest level. He can really help us to win football matches, and like I said, he's part of our group, and we protect our group, and I'm protective of our group, he deserves to be with us."
Commitment not in doubt
Tuchel added that he did not think the boos would force White to reconsider his decision to play for England again, insisting he had no reason to doubt the player's commitment. He continued: "I don't think so, I don't hope so. He seemed to me always committed and always dedicated and excited to come to camp and get the call-up. He had too many injuries.
"He's a high-quality player, and I honestly don't even know what happened (when he left the 2022 World Cup squad) and what were the deep reasons and the situation that he left camp. So, like I said, until I'm in charge, there is no reason to doubt his commitment or his passion.
"I don't want to think in these extreme terms at the moment. He overcame the boos the last time, I didn't hear them this time, and he can play on a high level. He proves it week in, week out for Arsenal. That is why I don't want to think about it at the moment."
