Thomas Tuchel clarifies Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish omission
What's the story
England manager Thomas Tuchel has clarified that he has "no problem" with Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, and Jack Grealish. The trio were omitted from his squad for the upcoming matches against Wales and Latvia. Despite returning from injury and regaining form at their respective clubs, Real Madrid's Bellingham and Manchester City's Foden as well as Everton's Grealish have been left out of the squad.
Exclusion rationale
'Special players can have special rules'
Tuchel revealed that Bellingham wanted to be included in the squad after their phone conversation. "He is a special player, and for special players there can always be special rules," said Tuchel about Bellingham's omission to BBC Sport. "Jude always deserves to be here. There is also the situation that he has not quite gathered his full rhythm again at Real Madrid - he has not finished a full match. He wanted to be called up. We had a phone call."
Player appreciation
Tuchel praises excluded players
Tuchel stressed his appreciation for the excluded players, saying they know how much he values them. He acknowledged Foden's performance for Manchester City and Grealish's impact on Everton. "Jack knows that I see how influential he is for Everton and is on the way to being the best version of himself. Jude knows he is a special player. He knows that I know he is a special player.:
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Tuchel feels excluded players need to accept his decision
"So, they have to accept it and nothing changes this decision against them or for the other players. It does not change my appreciation for their talent and personality," the former Chelsea boss added.
Selection defense
It was an easy choice, says Tuchel
Tuchel defended his decision to stick with largely the same squad after England's impressive 5-0 win over Serbia. He said it was an easy choice given their performance and team spirit. However, he also acknowledged there are players who deserve to be in the squad but couldn't be included due to limited spots available for selection.
Squad
England squad: Goalkeepers, defenders and midfielders
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), James Trafford (Manchester City). Defenders: Dan Burn (Newcastle United), Marc Guéhi (Crystal Palace), Reece James (Chelsea), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Djed Spence (Tottenham Hotspur), John Stones (Manchester City). Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Jordan Henderson (Brentford), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (AC Milan), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa).
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Here we look at the forwards
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Marcus Rashford (Barcelona, loan from Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa).