England face DR Congo in the World Cup this evening with a place in the Round of 16 at stake. Thomas Tuchel's side are among the favourites to lift the trophy, but several high-profile players have been left out of the 26-man squad.
Cole Palmer: The Biggest Shock
Chelsea star Cole Palmer's omission was the most surprising. Tuchel opted for Jude Bellingham, Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze in the No.10 role, with Noni Madueke as Bukayo Saka's understudy on the right wing.
Tuchel explained: 'He suffers from a lack of individual form within his club. He was not as decisive or as influential as he was in the last seasons. His record with us was just not outstanding, not good enough to make him “no matter what, he is coming”.'
'He had to pull out injured several times, when he was in camp he did not have the impact that we all wanted. It was one of the most difficult phone calls and obviously one of the most prominent names that we leave out, but I refuse to bring players for the name.'
Harry Maguire: Public Displeasure
Maguire had a strong season at Manchester United and was recalled for March friendlies, but was left out as Tuchel selected Marc Guehi, John Stones, Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn, Jarell Quansah and Trevoh Chalobah as centre-back options.
Maguire voiced his frustration on social media: 'I was confident I could of played a major part this summer for my country after the season I’ve had. I’ve loved nothing more than putting that shirt on and representing my country over the years.'
His family also reacted strongly, with his wife saying 'Beyond devastated for you', his mother calling it 'absolutely disgusting', his brother labelling it a 'shamble', and his sister calling it 'crazy'.
Tuchel responded: 'I was a bit surprised, but I respect his personality a lot. He had an outstanding season. We had a private conversation in which he had the chance to express his feelings. The decision is that we stood firmly with our central defenders that carried us through September, October, November.'
Phil Foden: Loss of Form
Foden's drop-off in form for Manchester City in the second half of the season saw him miss out. His last Premier League goal came in December, with only three assists since then.
Tuchel said: 'With Phil it’s a little bit different because Phil was excellent in camp for us. He was not only excellent in training, but also off training. And it hurt me a lot to call him and to tell him this decision. I could see in his reaction how much it affects him.'
'He lost momentum in a crucial moment of the season and basically the last half of the season, we could see glimpses here and there but not a lot of evidence.'
