Thomas Tuchel has defended his decision to leave Cole Palmer out of the England squad, insisting the Chelsea forward’s exclusion was not personal despite his strong club form.
Palmer is fit and available for Chelsea this weekend, following a check involving the England medical staff and his club. However, Tuchel has chosen to retain the players who were present and impressed during the previous international break.
“It’s not personal,” Tuchel said. “We’ll never assume Cole isn’t in the mindset to come and play for his country but the competition is on and the players who were in camp did an amazing job and kept their place.”
Palmer has been unavailable for selection through injury three times during Tuchel’s tenure and has withdrawn from two further squads. The England manager also attracted attention in September when he said the 23-year-old had missed too many opportunities to impress him after withdrawing through injury.
Tuchel rewards England players from previous camp
Jude Bellingham, Morgan Gibbs-White, Eberechi Eze and Morgan Rogers have all kept their places among the attacking midfield options. Nineteen-year-old Josh King has been added after previously being part of England’s pre-World Cup training group.
“It’s always the ones who are in camp, the ones who don’t withdraw,” Tuchel said. “The ones who walk the talk, and come to camp and show it matters and put the quality in. That’s what we will always reward.”
England defeated Croatia and the Czech Republic twice during the previous break before narrowly losing to Spain. Tuchel said the performances and commitment of that group had earned their continued selection.
“It matters what you do in camp. The last camp was an excellent one, so the trust and belief is on the players who were there,” he said.
Tuchel said King could provide cover across the forward positions, adding: “We have Josh King as a new player in there, but I want to see him on both wings. He’s kind of an extra player. We can cover all four eventualities because Josh can play all four positions.”
Palmer has recorded six goal involvements in nine Premier League appearances for Chelsea this season, but Tuchel said the strength of the previous camp had been decisive.
“I guess everyone is desperate to play for England and Cole is no exception,” Tuchel said. “The players who were in camp built something extraordinary throughout these two-and-a-half weeks and that’s why the credit goes to them, the trust is for them.”
The England manager stressed that Palmer could return in future. “The door is always open. Nothing has changed. We decided to do this camp without him,” he said.
Tuchel has taken a similar stance with Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, who also withdrew from the previous camp and has not been selected this time. “It matters when you’re in camp,” he said.
England face Croatia on Thursday November 12, knowing a point would secure their place in the Nations League quarter-finals. They then play Spain on Sunday November 15.
