In his latest 35-man squad,Tuchel has opted to put his faith in Tino Livramento, Djed Spence, and Ben White to fill the void on the right side of his defence. Even with Reece James currently sidelined through injury and veteran stalwarts Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier no longer part of the international picture, Alexander-Arnold has been unable to convince the German tactician that he belongs in the squad.
Tuchel elaborated on why he turned to Arsenal's White, who recently returned to the fold, rather than the Madrid man. Indeed, when Jarell Quansah pulled out of the squad, it was White who received the call-up rather than Alexander-Arnold. "The choice was for Ben White because I saw him play here in the cup final against Man City. He played the Champions League match before and was straight away back to his old self. It was a chance for me to meet him in person, see how he interacts with the group," the England boss explained.