Who's in England's World Cup squad? From Arsenal stars that are in to Newcastle men facing a battleplaceholder image
Who's in England's World Cup squad? From Arsenal stars that are in to Newcastle men facing a battle | Getty Images
Looking at who’s on the plane and who may as well burn their passport as England prepare for the 2026 World Cup.
It’s been a little more than a year since Thomas Tuchel was announced as England’s new head coach, and few are arguing with the wisdom of that appointment any more – only a dead rubber against Albania stands between the Three Lions and the prospect of taking a perfect competitive record to the World Cup next summer.
England have qualified at a canter and Tuchel’s selection process, which has prioritised players who fit his system rather than trying to build a tactical scheme around the best individuals available, has thus far been proven perfectly valid. It also makes working out what England’s squad could look like next summer rather challenging.
Tuchel’s squads so far have made it clear that he has no sacred cows – players have to be fully fit and getting regular first-team football or they’re discarded in unceremonious fashion. Very few players are truly safe. But who will be boarding a flight to the United States next June? And who will be left behind? We decided to take a look at how things currently stand…
Arsenal stars among only four truly assured of their place at the World Cup
Nailed on: Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Harry Kane, Jordan Pickford.
Only four of Tuchel’s senior players have been truly regular starters since he took over, and barring injury only four players are effectively guaranteed to be in the starting line-up next summer. Captain Kane, goalkeeper Pickford and Arsenal pair Saka and Rice will go if they can still stand up.
Almost assured of a space: Anthony Gordon, Ezri Konsa, John Stones, Jude Bellingham, Marc Guéhi, Marcus Rashford, Morgan Rogers, Reece James.
Most of these players are serious contenders for the starting line-up and while there’s been a lot of noise about Bellingham’s place – or Rogers’ – Tuchel has shown every sign of being very fond of both. It’s hard to imagine either being left behind unless their fitness or form nosedives.
There’s also an interesting battle for starts at centre-half and right-back, but all of the obvious contenders seem likely to be in the squad at the very least. Tuchel has chopped and changed, but this is where he’s settled. Gordon’s struggles at club level haven’t hurt his chances of getting call-ups yet, so there’s no immediate reason to believe that will change. Tuchel likes how the Newcastle winger fits his system, and past Rashford and Eberechi Eze (who we’ll get to) there’s little strong competition.
Newcastle and Nottingham Forest men in good shape for the squad
Facing a battle for a spot: Dan Burn, Dean Henderson, Djed Spence, Eberechi Eze, Elliot Anderson, Jordan Henderson, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Nick Pope, Nico O’Reilly.
There’s a few separate scraps going on here: There are the favourites for the vacant left-back spot, with Lewis-Skelly likely to come firmly back into the running if he gets more playing time at Arsenal, and then a number of players who will probably be going but do run more risk than those above them of getting chopped if they run out of steam.
Of these, Anderson is most likely to travel given how well he’s performed alongside Rice so far, and he’s only listed here because he has too few caps to be considered a regular just yet. Henderson probably goes given Tuchel’s evident faith in him, but Adam Wharton could mount a late charge for that space.
Both Eze and Jarrod Bowen will probably travel as versatile back-ups out wide, but with Cole Palmer yet to come back from injury and Phil Foden fighting his way back into contention, the chances that either ends up being the 27th man in a 26-player squad are not zero. Eze is probably ahead of Bowen in the pecking order right now, so he falls into our next category…
Need a run of form: Cole Palmer, Jarrod Bowen, Ollie Watkins, Phil Foden, Valentino Livramento.
Four players here who have every reason to believe that they’re in contention but who have been given limited chances under Tuchel either due to form or fitness.
The most interesting player here is probably Palmer. Tuchel doesn’t seem to think that Palmer can play anywhere other than number 10 for England in his system, so he’s battling Bellingham and Rogers, both of whom have had more time to stake claim. With only one more international break between now and decision time, there is a very real chance that the Chelsea man stays home unless he can recapture his best form and stay fit.
Tuchel’s opinion of Foden’s new ‘nine-and-a-half’ role will determine whether he can make it into the squad with the head coach not viewing the Manchester City man as a potential winger. Watkins remains in the frame despite being dropped from the last squad but needs to start scoring very soon to make the trip.
Liverpool and Everton stars could miss out on current form
Need a really big run of form: Aaron Ramsdale, Alex Scott, Conor Gallagher, Curtis Jones, James Trafford, Jarell Quansah, Jarrad Branthwaite, Lewis Hall, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Trevoh Chalobah.
Recent selections have made it pretty clear that all of the players above are in Tuchel’s thoughts somewhere, but that they need to catch fire between now and June to make it into the squad. These are the players who are coming from too far back, either because they’re new to the England scene, have been injured for much of the manager’s reign or because they’re clearly below others in Tuchel’s personal rankings so far.
Lewis Hall is an interesting one – he looked nailed on to be England’s long-term left-back at one point but Tuchel’s system asks for a different kind of full-back and injuries have hampered his progress. Once he’s fit, perhaps Tuchel will give him a chance.
We could easily make a case for Alexander-Arnold to be in our final category, the players who just aren’t going to make it. There are no indications that he’s really in Tuchel’s plans and we’re at a point at which his being passed over is making a point, where it’s personal or purely tactical. But so immensely talented is he that we can’t rule him out entirely, especially when James picks up so many injuries.
Out of luck: Harry Maguire, Ivan Toney, Jack Grealish, Kobbie Mainoo, Kyle Walker, Luke Shaw, Rico Lewis, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, and many more beside...
Finally, the list of players who simply seem to be out of the equation - either not in Tuchel’s thoughts at all, or too far down the list to get the nod unless the injuries really rack up. Some of these players have been called up and then tossed aside, others simply aren’t getting given a chance with others preferred. The ability is here in this category, but the opportunities aren’t, and that’s likely to be terminal with no shortage of quality further ahead.
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