Key events
Brighton’s goalkeeper Jason Steele is probably the most surprising call up. England intend to use him as a training keeper at the World Cup.
Mo Salah injury news
Mo Salah has been ruled out of Liverpool’s Saturday game against Brighton and Egypt’s squad. Arne Slot said the winger “felt something” during Liverpool’s win over Galatasaray.
What do you think of the England squad? Who should/shouldn’t have been included? “>Let me know.
Ollie Watkins and Luke Shaw have also been left out of the squad. Watkins has only scored three goals this year and Shaw has struggled with injuries throughout his career. I imagine that’s the thinking behind their exclusion.
Thomas Tuchel explains his logic for naming such a large squad for the friendlies against Uruguay and Japan.
We decided to divide it into basically two camps almost, so we bring players in that we haven’t seen who haven’t played so much to open up the picture and the competition for plane tickets to the US. Then from Friday and Saturday, a group of players will come into camp – 10 or 11 players who get a rest before and we will then go with a new group and mix of players into the match against Japan.
So, who has been left out of the squad? The big omission is Trent Alexander-Arnold. The defender has started seven of Real Madrid’s last nine games after being out of favour earlier in the season. Reece James is also unavailable as he picked up a hamstring injury against Newcastle. It seems strange to leave him out of a 35-man squad.
England squad
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson, Jordan Pickford, James Trafford, Aaron Ramsdale, Jason Steele
Defenders: Dan Burn, Marc Guéhi, Lewis Hall, Ezri Konsa, Tino Livramento, Harry Maguire, Nico O’Reilly, Jarell Quansah, Djed Spence, John Stones, Fikayo Tomori
Midfielders: Elliot Anderson, Jude Bellingham, James Garner, Jordan Henderson, Kobbie Mainoo, Declan Rice, Morgan Rogers, Adam Wharton
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Eberechi Eze, Phil Foden, Anthony Gordon, Harry Kane, Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Dominic Solanke
We will have more England squad news to follow.
Maguire, Mainoo and Calvert-Lewin in 35-man England squad
David Hytner
Harry Maguire and Kobbie Mainoo have been recalled to the England squad for the upcoming Wembley friendlies against Uruguay and Japan, Thomas Tuchel rewarding them for their excellent form at Manchester United. The England manager has also given a first call-up to Everton’s James Garner and recalled Lewis Hall of Newcastle, Leeds’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Tottenham’s Dominic Solanke. Tuchel has picked a larger-than-normal squad of 35 players in order to manage their minutes at a critical stage of the season. It is the last squad he will name before he does so for the World Cup in the summer.
Here’s a message from Krishnamoorthy:
Will the Premier League teams make a clean sweep of the European trophies? As of now I am confident only about the Europa League. My trust is not with Villa but with the serial winner Unai Emery.
A Premier League clean sweep looks unlikely after last round’s showing. The top teams from elsewhere in Europe have a decisiveness in key moments that some of the Premier League teams lack. I don’t see Liverpool beating PSG or Nottingham Forest beating Porto in the next round.
Lewis Hall is also set for a return to the England squad. Newcastle’s left back has been excellent this year and will likely be the first choice in his position for the World Cup.
Here’s a recap of last night’s European fixtures involving English teams.
Michael Carrick has changed Manchester United’s fortunes since taking over as interim coach after Ruben Amorim’s dismissal. His side have only lost once in the nine games that he’s been in charge – a 2-1 loss against Newcastle. Read Jamie Jackson’s piece about how Carrick keeps his cool on the touchline.
Manchester United duo Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire seem set for England call ups. Recalls today would mark the first time a Manchester United player has been involved in the England setup since September 2024.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to another football live blog! Yesterday English teams managed to redeem themselves in Europe slightly, with Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace progressing to the next round of the Europa League and Conference League respectively. This all bodes well for the national team. The England squad will be announced at 11am. Stick with me for updates and feel free to “>send me a message with your thoughts.