Thomas Tuchel has named his first squad as England manager, with two Arsenal players making the cut.
Myles Lewis-Skelly has earned his first international call-up, while Declan Rice was also included in Tuchel’s first roster as Three Lions boss.
The European nation take on Albania and Latvia later this month in their first two qualifying matches for World Cup 2026.
Tuchel waxed lyrical about Lewis-Skelly after the squad announcement, but the German opted not to pick either Ethan Nwaneri or Ben White in his inaugural ensemble.
Thomas Tuchel explains why he didn’t select Ben White for England
Nwaneri may have missed out on the senior set-up, but the youngster did earn his first call-up the under-21s.
Arsenal fans were disappointed by Nwaneri’s omission, although this incremental step is probably a positive thing for his career, and could’ve been expected given the plethora of experienced options in his position in England’s senior squad.
Meanwhile, White’s absence from Tuchel’s selection perhaps sparked more question marks.
Reports emerged in November suggesting that White wants to return to England duty, and that the former Chelsea boss is a fan of the defender.
However, when the squad was released on Friday morning, White’s name was nowhere to be seen.
The likes of Dan Burn, Ezri Konsa and Jarrel Quansah were all picked above the 26-year-old, despite White arguably possessing greater talent than all three.
White started for the first time since returning from injury against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday, and looked fit and raring to go at the top level again.
That said, fitness has been cited as the reason for the player’s absence from the England squad.
Tuchel revealed that White is happy to be in contention for Three Lions duty again, but this international break came too early in his recovery.
The ex-Brighton man felt as though he needs two weeks at London Colney to build his fitness back up ahead of the run-in for Arsenal.
Based on this, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see White feature for his national team in June, after the domestic season has concluded.
Ben White should be starting for England
While the right-back spot is well covered for England, with the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James and Kyle Walker all fighting for one position, there is a void of quality at the heart of the country’s defence.
John Stones is ageing and regularly injured, while the likes of Konsa, Marc Guehi and Levi Colwill are all solid defenders, but none of them are in the elite bracket of centre-backs.
Meanwhile, White looks assured every time he plays as a central defender, and would fit nicely into a right centre-back role, if Tuchel opts to deploy a back three.
The Arsenal fan favourite has the ability on the ball to thrive in a possession-oriented system under Tuchel, while he can also push high up the pitch and contribute to the tactician’s aggressive pressing structure.
If he can stay fit, then White should absolutely be on the plane to North America next summer.
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