England named their World Cup squad, with shock omissions and surprises | OneFootball

The Three Lions will go to the World Cup with a squad missing several key players, such as Alexander-Arnold, Foden, Palmer, and Maguire. There are also several unexpected names Tuchel decided to back.

Coach Thomas Tuchel did not hesitate when drawing up England’s squad list for the 2026 World Cup. It was released early this Friday to the tune of The Beatles’ Come Together, and it sent shockwaves through the football world. He chose to leave out a long list of stars and historic names, while also including some surprises and dark horses.

Among the most notable absences are Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Phil Foden (Manchester City), and Cole Palmer (Chelsea). The England squad also includes a few names that came in through the back door, such as Djed Spence (Tottenham), as well as returns that were not in the plans, as in the cases of Dean Henderson (Brentford) and Ivan Toney (Al-Alhi).

Real Madrid’s footballing crisis and his adaptation problems in his first few months ended up costing Alexander-Arnold dearly. Less than a year ago, he left Liverpool in glory and dreamed of making history at the Bernabéu.

The German coach decided to leave him out of the final squad, as well as Maguire. It is a clear sign that a team rebuilding process is already underway, with the World Cup as the ultimate goal. What England did not expect, however, was for the Red Devils center-back, a regular starter in the UEFA qualifiers, to learn of his omission second-hand. “I’m shocked and devastated by the decision. I have loved nothing more than putting on that shirt and representing my country over the years. I wish the players all the best this summer,” he posted on his X account.

While major stars such as Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, and Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Marcus Rashford (Barcelona), and Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa) still shine on the list, other omissions also stand out: Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace), Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), Fikayo Tomori (Milan), and Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal).

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.