New England head coach Thomas Tuchel has confirmed that he will make contact with Arsenal's Ben White to see if he is prepared to end his exile from the national team.
Not since the 2022 World Cup - where he left the camp early due to personal reasons - has White been seen in an England kit, despite racking up the plaudits for his consistent Arsenal displays.
Gareth Southgate previously told the media that England simply had other right-backs ahead of the ex-Brighton & Hove Albion man, but it was soon reported that his withdrawal from the World Cup was due to an alleged bust-up with Steve Holland.
Southgate's former assistant purportedly made a spiky comment about White's perceived lack of interest in football in front of the rest of the Three Lions squad, after the player did not know the answer to a question about England's opponents.
Southgate vehemently denied rumours that White had fallen out with the coaching staff, but he admitted that the Arsenal right-back asked not to be selected for future camps, meaning that he was absent from Euro 2024.
Tuchel to "reach out" to Arsenal's White
Arsenal's Ben White pictured on October 22, 2024© Imago
Following Southgate's exit and Lee Carsley's temporary appointment, speculation began to swirl that White could perform a U-turn and make himself available for international duty again, but the 27-year-old did not return for the UEFA Nations League.
White is now facing months on the sidelines with a knee injury, potentially ruling him out of contention for March's World Cup 2026 qualifiers anyway, but Tuchel has extended an olive branch to the Gunners right-back and has affirmed that all players will now be given a "clean slate".
"Yes. I will reach out to him," The Mirror quotes Tuchel as saying after Friday's World Cup qualifying draw. "It should be clean and a clean start and a clear narrative.
"It starts from January. 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.' Then I will of course try to speak to them, but also be respectful to the schedule that they have, because schedule is busy in January, especially in the Premier League."
White made just four appearances for England before his self-imposed exile, and he was an unused substitute in both of the Three Lions' opening World Cup 2022 matches prior to his withdrawal.
What other England players could be given lifelines by Tuchel?
Manchester United's Mason Mount comes off injured on September 29, 2024© Imago
Carsley did not hesitate to trust in youth during his short tenure - no surprise given his successful time with the Under-21s - as Curtis Jones, Lewis Hall, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Angel Gomes, Noni Madueke and Tino Livramento all pulled on the famous white strip.
However, Tuchel has experience managing a few more experienced English stars who have since fallen out of the national team picture, most notably Manchester United's Mason Mount, who also excelled under the German at Chelsea.
Mount has also started to feature regularly under Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford as he puts his injury nightmares behind him, but the same cannot be said of Raheem Sterling, Reece James and Ben Chilwell.
Tuchel's "clean start" admission means that each member of the aforementioned trio should come back into the reckoning if they can find safe haven either at Stamford Bridge or elsewhere in 2025.
The new England boss also learned who he will face in his first game as Three Lions manager after the Euro 2024 finalists were drawn to face Andorra, Serbia, Albania and Latvia in Group K of World Cup qualifying.
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