There is still hope for the Real Madrid full-back.
Trent Alexander-Arnold’s hopes of going to the World Cup are not over, Thomas Tuchel insisted, despite leaving the Real Madrid defender out of the final England friendlies before the squad is named.
England face Uruguay and Japan this month, which serve as the last chance for players to stake their claim for a place in Tuchel’s travelling party for the finals in North America.
Tuchel has named a 35-man squad for the camp, but Alexander-Arnold, who has only played once for England since the German was appointed as Gareth Southgate’s successor, was not selected despite Reece James being out through injury.
Newcastle United’s Tino Livramento, Tottenham’s Djed Spence and Jarrell Quansah of Bayer Leverkusen have been picked as players who can all operate at right-back. Livramento and Spence can play both full-back spots, while Quansah can play right-back and centre-back.
But asked if Alexander-Arnold can now expect to miss out on the World Cup, Tuchel gave the former Liverpool star, along with striker Ollie Watkins and Luke Shaw, cause for optimism.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Dominic Solanke have been selected ahead of Aston Villa striker Watkins, while the superb form of Newcastle’s Lewis Hall has contributed to Shaw being pushed out of the squad. Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly has also been selected as an option at left-back.
“No, I know that it’s a tough decision for Trent, as it is for, I guess, for Ollie Watkins at the moment and for Luke Shaw,” Tuchel said.
“These tough decisions come with the job. It is a sporting decision, it is a sporting decision that we stick with Jarrel Quansah, with Tino Livramento, and with Djed Spence, who all can play for us in camp on the right full-back position.
“It is a decision for Dom Solanke and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, which I don’t know as well as I know for example, Olie Watkins. I feel I have a very clear picture of what Ollie can give us. I saw him in tournaments, I saw him with us in qualifying football. So I want to have a look at two other players to get a better picture and have a clearer opinion.
“I know it’s a tough one, I know it’s a big name, I think it’s a huge talent and a big career. But I feel that I know what Trent can give us and decided still to stick to the players who were in camp with us.”
Pressed on what Livramento, Spence and Quansah give England that Alexander-Arnold does not, Tuchel replied: “A slightly different profile, I would say, but it is more the evidence that we were good in September, October and November, than it has anything to do with what Trent cannot offer us.
“I know very well what Trent can offer us. I played many times against him and suffered when he played against us and against my teams with Liverpool. I know very well about his strength and what he can give, but at the moment it is like that we have evidence of how good we were in September, October and November.
“The players who are in camp that I mentioned for right full-back, they have to push for their ticket, they have to compete, they have to show again that they deserve their spot.”
Tuchel explains split England camp
The size of the England squad can be explained by Tuchel’s plan to split the camp into two halves, with 11 players not joining up until after the Uruguay game, while some players will be released following that encounter.
Those 11 players are:
- Dean Henderson
- Dan Burns
- Marc Guehi
- Ezri Konsa
- Nico O’Reilly
- Elliott Anderson
- Declan Rice
- Morgan Rogers
- Anthony Gordon
- Harry Kane
- Bukayo Saka
Explaining that decision, Tuchel said: “These guys have played 3,500 minutes, some 4,000 minutes. 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.
“They will come with hunger. Once they come, I think the headline changes a bit of camp, maybe from the competition for minutes, a competition for a ticket, it will still be on. But it’s more about reconnecting, reconnecting the group and reconnecting also to our standards and to our level.
“That’s the expectation and that’s why we gave these players a bit of a break and the chance to join us later.”
England squad in full
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), James Trafford (Manchester City), Aaron Ramsdale (Newcastle United), Jason Steele (Brighton & Hove Albion)
Defenders: Dan Burn (Newcastle United), Marc Guéhi (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Nico O’Reilly (Manchester City), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Djed Spence (Tottenham Hotspur), John Stones (Manchester City), Fikayo Tomori (AC Milan)
Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), James Garner (Everton), Jordan Henderson (Brentford), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace)
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Arsenal), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Marcus Rashford (Barcelona, loan from Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham Hotspur)
