Strasbourg defender Ben Chilwell has claimed that England head coach Thomas Tuchel has left the door open to a potential return to the Three Lions squad for the 2026 World Cup.
Chilwell has endured a hugely frustrating period in his career having been demoted to Chelsea's 'bomb squad' soon after the arrival of Enzo Maresca in the summer of 2024.
As a result, the left-back featured for just 45 minutes during the first half of last season before only accumulating 395 minutes over 11 outings on loan at Crystal Palace.
On Thursday night, Chilwell is expected to be part of the Strasbourg squad that faces Palace in a Conference League fixture at Stade de la Meinau.
That has naturally brought the 28-year-old into the spotlight ahead of the clash with the Eagles, and he has suggested in an interview with BBC Sport that he is motivated to prove Chelsea wrong.
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England recall would be "biggest middle finger"
Although he insists that there is no direct resentment towards Chelsea, Chilwell has indicated that he is driven to gate-crash England's World Cup squad as a result of being left out of the picture at Stamford Bridge.
He said: "What a story it would be if I went to the World Cup after I was in the [Chelsea] bomb squad and everyone had counted me out 12 months prior.
"It would just be the biggest middle finger to so many people, which to me is a motivation. Chelsea were honest with me and there's no resentment, but of course I've got an ego, so it would be a nice feeling to prove some people wrong."
When addressing his chances, Chilwell added: "We've had conversations since he's got the job at England. I'll try and word it right - it has been said that it's not out of the equation."
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What are Chilwell's numbers at Strasbourg?
Having linked up with Strasbourg on a permanent deal during the closing hours of the summer transfer window, Chilwell has had to play catch-up.
Nevertheless, he still has 658 minutes of football to his name spread across nine appearances, eight of which have come in Ligue 1.
He has either been used as a left-sided centre-back, left-back or wing-back, completing the 90 minutes on six occasions.
Most notably, he completed the 3-3 draw at Paris Saint-Germain on October 17.