If Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden are left out of Thomas Tuchel’s next England squad, their ability to qualify for the World Cup is highly doubtful. It would be shocking for Foden to miss out on a major North American production. It is inconceivable that Bellingham will be ignored.
The manager is expected to announce his latest squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Serbia and Albania on Friday, which will be the last time he will select England’s squad for competitive games before the World Cup finals.
It will also be the last time the squad will be put together until March, when two friendlies are scheduled before the main squad is announced in May.
Nevertheless, with England already booked into the final, Tuchel must decide whether to experiment or start building an established squad that will make it all the way to North America next summer.
There is a strong feeling within the team that it will be the latter, and there are only four games left against England before he chooses the big games. Please miss it now. Barring an injury, you can probably plan your vacation for next June.
Commenting on excluding Bellingham and Foden from international camp last month, Tuchel said they were both “special” players, but he wanted to reward the players for their great performances for him in September by naming them in the same team if possible. Such reasoning cannot be used this time. If either one is missing, it will be impossible for the manager to convince people that he is still in his plans for next summer barring injury.
Bellingham’s situation is more complex and delicate than Foden’s. For England’s most high-profile and enigmatic player, this is something that needs to be handled wisely and diplomatically.
A month ago, Tuchel bristled when I reminded him that he had called Bellingham “disgusting” in June. He then apologized for it, but reminded me that he didn’t mean it. He sternly insisted that there was no problem with his relationship with the Real Madrid star and that he would call him and speak to him before the next international break.
In reality, however, Tuchel turned down the chance to build bridges with Bellingham last month, leaving when the player requested to join him, and the pair have not met in person since that unfortunate mud-throwing incident in June.
Bellingham is in great form at the club. Although he was uncharacteristically quiet in Tuesday’s Champions League win over Liverpool, he scored a stunning goal in Saturday’s La Liga victory over Valencia and was named Man of the Match in El Clasico against Barcelona, with an assist and the winning goal.
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Watch Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham’s stunning goal against Valencia in La Liga
After the match against Liverpool, Bellingham said: “I would love to be selected.” “But it’s not my phone. I’m sure you know whose phone it is.”
It didn’t seem like the Galactico were too impressed with Tuchel’s treatment. The England manager was also not at Anfield for the match. If Bellingham is left out of the England squad, the headlines will write themselves.
It’s true that he won’t be chosen, but even if he is, that won’t be the end of the story. Now, because of the situation Tuchel has created, all camera lenses and reporters’ eyes will be on how the two interact during this international holiday. Do you feel nervous? Does it sound familiar? Is there…a bond there?
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Manchester City manager Josep Guardiola praises Phil Foden’s ‘special’ performance – details what he must do to return to England squad
Foden asked to be removed from the England squad in June as he was dealing with personal and emotional issues which he felt were contributing to his uncharacteristically poor performances on the pitch.
But, as Josep Guardiola has said, he is now back to his best at Manchester City, as evidenced by his dominant performance in this week’s Champions League game against Borussia Dortmund, in which he scored two spectacular goals.
He was left out of the England squad last month. If Foden does not make the squad, England will have Bellingham, the injured Cole Palmer and the recently brilliant Morgan Rodgers in England’s 10th pecking order, meaning Foden will feel far from being at the top of Tuchel’s thoughts ahead of the World Cup. Ebelesi Eze and Morgan Gibbs-White have also been backed ahead of Tuchel.
“I really like it,” Foden told TNT Sports after Dortmund’s win. “I need to play with a smile on my face, and I do.”
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Ahead of his 200th Premier League appearance against Bournemouth, Phil Foden takes on Sky Sports’ Darts Challenge and talks about how the next few weeks will be ‘season-defining’ for Manchester City.
Elsewhere, Nico O’Reilly, who played for Manchester City this season, is likely to retain his place in the team as a left-back. He also scored his first goal for the club against Bournemouth at the weekend.
Anthony Gordon would be shocked if he misses this game, given his impressive performances for his country of late. He and Marcus Rashford appeared to have secured a spot on the team’s left wing.
Gordon scored his second goal for England in Latvia last month, but has suffered a recurrence of his hip injury in the last two games against Newcastle, forcing him to leave both games, and it seems inevitable that he will miss this month’s international camp.
In some ways, that could work to Tuchel’s advantage. This means the team has an extra spot to accommodate one of the number 10 players, such as Foden, Eze or Rodgers, who also play as a winger.
Anthony Gordon could be left out of England’s latest squad as he continues to battle a hip injury
The England manager approached Adam Wharton but did not select him for the first team. The Crystal Palace midfielder is now training again after recovering from illness and is certainly on Tuchel’s long list of considerations.
Danny Welbeck is also said to be a potential new addition to the (old) squad, but the man, who turns 35 later this month, would have to push past Ollie Watkins to join the squad.
He is probably the most natural replacement for Harry Kane in the event of an injury to the captain, and he is in great form. So far this season, only Erling Haaland has scored more than his six Premier League goals for Brighton.
However, he has not played for England since 2018 and there are question marks over whether Tuchel will seriously consider him with the World Cup just seven months away.
