Thomas Tuchel says he will “reach out” to Arsenal defender Ben White when he officially takes over as England manager.
White has not played for his country since a friendly victory over Cote d’Ivoire in March 2022.
He was included in the England squad for the World Cup in Qatar that winter but did not play any minutes before returning home during the group stage.
Various statements claimed the former Brighton defender left the camp for personal reasons but that is only the tip of the iceberg.
It has been widely reported that White did not get on with Gareth Southgate’s assistant manager Steve Holland, who reportedly claimed the Arsenal star ‘wasn’t sufficiently interested in football’.
With Southgate and Holland in charge of the Three Lions, White made himself unavailable for selection.
However, the 27-year-old could return to the team under incoming boss Tuchel, who discovered his side’s opponents in their 2026 World Cup qualification group on Friday.
Speaking on Friday, the German said it is a “clean start” for the national team and that he will contact White in the New Year.
“I will reach out to him,” said Tuchel. “It should be a clean start and a clear narrative.
“I will be in the stadiums from January. I will also not distract the players and they should just know, ‘OK, the boss is there from January’.”
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White clearly wants to play for his country, revealing that he cried for an hour after receiving his first call-up in 2021.
He said at the time: “I got a phone call, got told the news, I was out for dinner, I didn’t really believe it!
“Obviously speaking to Dan (Ashworth), he told me all the news, when I was going, it was obviously unbelievable.
“I put the phone down, rang my mum straight away, sat down there, cried, mum was crying, mum, my dad, had all my sisters there and, yeah, I just sat and cried for about an hour.
“I couldn’t really believe it and I don’t think it’s settled in yet.
“I didn’t really think that I would be called, I thought it was a bit too late because I’ve heard you get called way before it.
“But I obviously didn’t and when that call did come I was over the moon with it and shocked really.
“No pressure, I’ve got to go what I’ve got to do, do my best and if I get game time, I’ve got to produce my quality and show what I’ve got.”
White is currently out injured having undergone surgery for a knee problem last month.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta confirmed: “Ben White is going to be out for months, unfortunately. It’s been different kinds of struggles, never the same thing.
“We had to make a decision, it hasn’t been improving in the last few weeks.
“We know Ben is going to push every boundary, but it got to a point where we had to protect the player. We decided to do surgery, he agreed with that and that’s going to keep him out for a few months.
“We have to see how he reacts post-surgery, I don’t expect it to be half a year but I can’t say exactly how long it will be.”