Tuchel to name England squad on Friday amid debate over potential debutants and recalls
Thomas Tuchel will name his next England squad on Friday as the Three Lions prepare for the final international break of the year in the Nations League. England sit almost certain to reach the knockout stage after a 7-0 win over Croatia, and home and away fixtures against Croatia and Spain offer the chance to secure top spot before March's quarter-finals.
Tuchel has referred to "credit in the bank" for players who have performed for him previously, but injuries kept several contributors to England's World Cup semi-final run out of the last squad. Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice are now regarded as near-automatic selections, leaving a small number of places open and prompting questions over whether Tuchel will recall familiar faces or hand senior debuts.
One candidate for a first cap is the 19-year-old Fulham midfielder King, who travelled to the US as part of the World Cup preparation squad alongside Alex Scott, Ethan Nwaneri and Rio Ngumoha. Scott and Ngumoha have since made senior debuts and Nwaneri is on loan at Borussia Dortmund; Tuchel said in his last press conference that King is close to a senior call-up and the midfielder has impressed for the under-21s. King faces the practical issue of breaking into the favoured number 10 role with Bellingham described in the piece as England's best player and that position being particularly strong.
The striker role presents another selection dilemma. Dominic Calvert-Lewin was included in squads before and after the World Cup but managed just 15 minutes from two substitute appearances in the last window, while Tuchel has used Bellingham as Kane's back-up. Will Lankshear, 21, who began at Tottenham before being sold to Middlesbrough this summer for £20m, has 15 goals in all competitions this campaign, including 13 in as many Championship games to help Middlesbrough top the division. Lankshear scored on his under-21 debut in the last international window, missed Middlesbrough's loss to Wrexham with a tweaked hamstring but could return for Saturday, and Tuchel is aware of him amid a noted shortage of natural number nines across the age groups.
Midfield options under consideration include Everton's number 10 Dewsbury-Hall, who has turned down call-ups to play for the Republic of Ireland as he focuses on representing the Three Lions and has contributed two goals and two assists in all competitions while Everton sit seventh in the league. James Garner was called up ahead of Dewsbury-Hall when there were dropouts in the last international break, with Tuchel describing Garner as a "mini-Valverde". Morgan Gibbs-White was a late replacement in the last camp after high-profile pull-outs, leaving a family holiday to join up; Tuchel referenced Gibbs-White's willingness to join, and the Nottingham Forest captain, 26, featured in every game of the last break though he did not start, leaving him to compete with the likes of Bellingham, Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Eberechi Eze for midfield places.
Defensive and experienced midfield recalls are also possible. Arsenal defender White missed the World Cup with a knee injury that also kept him out of the Champions League final and then missed the first England squad of this campaign through injury; Tuchel said the 29-year-old would have been called up if fit, citing his partnership with Bukayo Saka as potentially good for the Three Lions. White has been available for all but one of Arsenal's games this season and would provide a right-back option while Reece James is absent. Jordan Henderson has not been in the England set-up since suffering a broken arm after falling over an advertising hoarding following England's win over Mexico in the Azteca Stadium at the World Cup; after a move from Brentford to Chelsea and recovery he started five games in a row for Chelsea and scored twice in a win over Bournemouth before missing Chelsea's win over Manchester United with injury, and the 36-year-old is described in the piece as a popular figure respected by staff and players.
Tuchel's squad announcement on Friday will determine which players are recalled and whether any newcomers are handed debuts for England's Nations League fixtures at home to Croatia and in Spain, matches that could decide whether England secure top spot in their group ahead of the quarter-finals in March.
