Predicting Tuchel's 55-man list of potential England players - including Arsenal & Liverpool starsPredicting Tuchel's 55-man list of potential England players - including Arsenal & Liverpool stars
Predicting Tuchel's 55-man list of potential England players - including Arsenal & Liverpool stars | Getty Images
We attempt to work out who might be on Thomas Tuchel’s 55-player longlist of potential England players for the next World Cup.
Next Thursday, new England head coach Thomas Tuchel will finally name his first Three Lions squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Albania and Latvia – and according to widespread reports, the German manager has drawn up a longlist of 55 players who he believes could contribute to England’s tilt at football’s biggest prize in 2026.
With confidence about qualification from a group which also includes Serbia and Andorra high, Tuchel – who is contracted through to the next World Cup but no further - is expected to focus purely on players who could make the difference in the United States next summer rather than worrying about players who might be involved past that point. But who is on his 55-player list?
We’ve taken a stab at the players under consideration below, from those who are guaranteed a place in Tuchel’s thoughts to the fringe players and youth prospects who could be ready to start in 2026.
There is plenty of room for error – after all, who can guess how many goalkeepers he has included on his supposed spreadsheet? – but based on current form and proximity to the squad, this is probably close to the final list. Let’s take a look at who Tuchel might have in mind…
Nailed on - 9
Trent Alexander-Arnold,Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Marc Guéhi, Harry Kane, Cole Palmer, Jordan Pickford, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka
Unless Tuchel is planning to make an especially bold and probably unwise statement with his selections, these are the nine players who are all but guaranteed a place in the England side going forward.
Bukayo Saka, twice England’s Player of the Year, will likely be left out of next week’s squad as he recovers from long-term injury, but it would be unthinkable for Tuchel to drop any of these names unless they experienced a freakish fall-off between now and the start of the next World Cup.
Some fans may raise an eyebrow slightly at the inclusion of Phil Foden given that he has yet to really shine on the international stage, but his extraordinary level of talent means that it’s pretty much certain that Tuchel will see if he can find a role which suits the Manchester City man.
Near certainties - 13
Jarrod Bowen, Levi Colwill, Eberechi Eze, Conor Gallagher, Anthony Gordon, Jack Grealish, Ezri Konsa, James Maddison, Kobbie Mainoo, Dominic Solanke, Ollie Watkins,Ben White
We’d expect every single one of these names to be on Tuchel’s list, but there is at least a little bit of room for Tuchel to view one or two of them as surplus to requirements based on playing style and tactical fit – nevertheless, these are players who have the combination of quality and England experience which makes it virtually certain that they’ll be in the first squad if available.
We’ve included Ben White because we know that Tuchel has contacted him about returning to the fold after his self-imposed exile during the Southgate era, even if we don’t yet know White’s response. James Maddison is another player who has publicly said that Tuchel has been in touch, so we essentially know that he’s in the 55.
Several of these players may fall by the wayside if they can’t maintain a high level of form and there’s no certainty that a player like Maddison or Jack Grealish will be in the team that travels to the States (assuming they qualify, of course) but their inclusion in the longlist seems like a foregone conclusion based on sheer talent alone.
Up-and-comers - 13
Elliot Anderson, Jarrad Branthwaite, Liam Delap, Lewis Hall, Curtis Jones, Rico Lewis, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Tino Livramento, Noni Madueke, Ethan Nwaneri, Morgan Rogers, Jarrel Quansah, James Trafford, Adam Wharton
Here’s where we have to start making some assumptions, although it would be a surprise if most or all of these names weren’t somewhere on Tuchel’s draft team sheets.
A few of these players, including Elliot Anderson, Liam Delap and Ethan Nwaneri, have yet to feature for the Three Lions and it’s possible that the new England management doesn’t share our optimism about one or two of their futures, but given their performances in the Premier League it seems eminently plausible that all of them have earned a place in Tuchel’s thinking.
A handful of these players, particularly Rico Lewis, can perhaps be said to be ‘near certainties’, but their places are far from guaranteed if Tuchel doesn’t believe that they quite fit his scheme. We’ve included Burnley’s James Trafford, too, who we presume is seen as a possibility for the goalkeeper’s jersey by the time 2026 rolls around given his form in the second tier. We’d expect that no more than one or two of these players aren’t in the 55.
Doubts due to age or injuries - 6
Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kyle Walker
Now we reach a short list of players who have been staples of England squad selections for several years but who are either getting on in years, have struggled with injuries, or are simply seen by many as reaching a point where they aren’t necessarily essential to the squad – a description which fits Ben Chilwell, who hasn’t played much football this season, and the ever-controversial Harry Maguire.
We’d guess that at least five of these players are in that 55 – Chilwell is the biggest question mark by far – but it wouldn’t be a total shock if Tuchel had taken stock and decided that it was time to move on from Maguire or even John Stones, who is 31 and spending more and more time on the sidelines.
Reece James would be a shoe-in were it not for lingering doubts over his fitness, while Kyle Walker has visibly lost some of the blistering pace that has been an important part of his game over the years. England’s new boss may still value his experience, of course, but it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if the new manager chose to move on.
Fringe players - 14
Eric Dier, Lewis Dunk, Morgan Gibbs-White, Angel Gomes, Joe Gomez, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Dean Henderson, Keane Lewis-Potter, Tyrick Mitchell, Aaron Ramsdale, Marcus Rashford, Djed Spence, Fikayo Tomori, Ivan Toney
Now we’re starting to play the real guessing game. These are the players who have sporadically impressed for club or country, the wild cards, the players who are battling their way into consideration after years on the outside, and the back-up goalies most likely to be high up on the list.
Among the more eyebrow-raising names, perhaps, are Eric Dier, who isn’t a regular starter for Bayern Munich this season but was signed and started by Tuchel in the second half of the 2023/24 campaign, and Djed Spence, who has been on fine form for Spurs after years of struggling to even get on the pitch.
Will Marcus Rashford’s new lease of life at Aston Villa prove enough to catapult him back into consideration? Will Keane Lewis-Potter’s versatility earmark him as a useful depth piece for a major tournament? And how much does Tuchel care about Ivan Toney playing his club football in Saudi Arabia? All questions that are tough to answer from the outside.
A few notable names haven’t made the cut here, including Jordan Henderson, who we suspect may have earned his last Three Lions cap at the age of 35, Tyrone Mings, who could get back into contention if he gets regular starting minutes for Villa after more than a year out thanks to an ACL injury, and a couple of possible back-up goalkeepers such as Nick Pope and Sam Johnstone, who may be a little too far down the list of glovemen to be included. There are also plenty of very impressive youngsters who could make it with a burst of consistent form - Brighton’s Jack Hinshelwood, perhaps, or Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott? As for whether Tuchel will surprise us and pick out some players who didn’t make our 55, we’ll find out on Thursday…