Thomas Tuchel is yet to find his first-choice left-back for England's World Cup campaign but Newcastle United's Lewis Hall has been tipped to be called-up
Thomas Tuchel
Thomas Tuchel has a number of calls to make ahead of England's World Cup campaign(Image: Getty Images)
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Newcastle United defender Lewis Hall "has to start" for England at left-back for the World Cup, according to Micah Richards. The 21-year-old has impressed with Eddie Howe's team and was key in their 3-1 FA Cup win against Aston Villa.
Hall has secured two caps for the Three Lions, featuring in the starting XI for the 5-0 triumph over the Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Nations League under Lee Carsley in 2024. He also played 45 minutes in the 3-0 success in Greece in the same week.
Injuries stopped him from receiving a call-up by Thomas Tuchel in 2025, with him compelled to miss the final three months of last season. This campaign, Hall has already featured 31 times for the Magpies - three fewer than he accumulated in total last term.
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England is amongst the favourites to claim the World Cup in North America this summer, with the tournament commencing in June. The left-back slot is presently undecided, with numerous players utilised under Tuchel - including Myles Lewis-Skelly, Dan Burn, Djed Spence and Nico O'Reilly.
Manchester United's Luke Shaw has also surfaced as a candidate to start at left-back following his impressive displays this season. However, Richards has demanded Hall to start at the World Cup.
"Lewis Hall has to start for England, he's absolutely amazing," he said on The Rest is Football podcast after the Villa win. "To go from midfield to left-back, his spatial awareness, his timing of his challenges, he's good on the ball, got a good delivery, he's good at everything. His performances over the last two months have been outstanding. He's by far the best."
Lewis Hall
Lewis Hall has impressed with Newcastle this season(Image: Newcastle United via Getty Image)
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Following his absence from the Under-21s Euros triumph, Hall spoke about the possibility of reaching the World Cup during a conversation with the Daily Mail towards the end of last year. "I've obviously had my taste of the senior camp before, so I know sort of how it felt to be there," Hall said.
"It's definitely a big goal of mine [the World Cup], and it's something that I'd love to do. By the time the World Cup comes about I'll be 21, so, being able to go to a World Cup at 21 is obviously a big achievement in my eyes and it's something that I would be so proud of myself to do. Yeah, that's obviously a big aim for me."
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