Palmer misses too many chances to impress - Tuchel

Published8 hours ago

England manager Thomas Tuchel said Cole Palmer "misses too many chances to impress" after not selecting the Chelsea forward for November's Nations League fixtures.

Palmer, 24, dropped out of England's squad for their previous games in early autumn and is absent again for matches against Croatia at Wembley on Thursday, 12 November and Spain in Madrid on Sunday, 15 November.

Tuchel has instead handed Fulham's Josh King and Borussia Dortmund's Jobe Bellingham their first England call-ups. Both players are attacking midfielders.

"We have enough number 10s and we stick to the guys who were in the previous camp because we were happy with the two and a half weeks we had together," said Tuchel.

"We have Josh King as a new player in there, but I want to see him on both wings. He is kind of an extra player and he can play all four positions.

"I guess everyone is desperate to play for England and Cole is no exception.

"We are speaking now about a player that is not in camp. It counts when you are in camp and I just said last time that he misses too many opportunities to impress."

Jobe, 21, joins his brother Jude in the England squad - and they could be the first pair of siblings to feature in an England line-up since Gary and Phil Neville.

England sit second behind Spain in group A3 of the Nations League with three wins and a loss.

One more point from their remaining two matches will secure a place in the two-legged quarter-finals in March, with the winners of those ties advancing to the Nations League Finals in June.

Catch-up with all Thomas Tuchel's responses at his squad selection news conference

Catch-up with all Thomas Tuchel's responses at his squad selection news conference

England squad for Croatia and Spain matches

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Jason Steele (Brighton & Hove Albion), James Trafford (Leeds United)

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Marc Guehi (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United), Ezri Konsa (Arsenal), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Djed Spence (Inter Milan), Ben White (Arsenal)

Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Manchester City), Jobe Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), James Garner (Everton), Josh King (Fulham), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Declan Rice (Arsenal)

Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Anthony Gordon (Barcelona), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool), Morgan Rogers (Chelsea)

'Standout' Bellingham and 'flexible' King

The selection of Jobe Bellingham for the senior squad means he continues to follow in the footsteps of his older brother.

Both graduates of the Birmingham City academy, the brothers were regular selections in England youth line-ups.

Jobe joined Dortmund from Sunderland in summer 2025 in a deal worth up to £31m, having helped the Wearside club win promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs.

The move mirrored one made by Jude, 23, who played for the German side between 2020 and 2023 before signing for Real Madrid.

Tuchel said England Under-21 coach Lee Carsley had been "speaking very highly" of Jobe Bellingham "for a while".

"He is the captain of the under-21s so I think the door should always be open and the pathway should always be open for special performances over a long period of time and that is what Jobe has done," he added.

"He found his way and his rhythm with Dortmund, where he has had an excellent start to the season. He is a regular starter there and now very influential."

Bellingham has been preferred to Kobbie Mainoo, with Tuchel saying the Manchester United midfielder, who was an early withdrawal from the last squad, has had a "difficult spell with his club".

"The door is always open for younger players to overtake and make their mark," he added.

King has had a strong start to the Premier League season, scoring two goals and making one assist, and has played at every youth level for England.

The 19-year-old Fulham academy graduate has scored one goal in nine appearances for England Under-21s, and Tuchel called him "a fantastic character" who "gives us a bit of flexibility".

"We decided to nominate 22 outfield players for flexibility in training and he is the extra player in training, if you will," Tuchel added.

What other changes are there?

Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka misses out on the November fixtures after sustaining a quadriceps injury against Bayern Munich last month.

The Premier League champions believe the 25-year-old will be absent for six weeks after he was substituted early in the Champions League game against Bayern Munich.

Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott is also not selected after picking up an injury against Croatia in October.

The 23-year-old, who made his England debut in the first international break of the season and was described as "the complete package" by Tuchel, is reportedly in contention to return for the Cherries against Ipswich on Sunday.

Manchester United's Marcus Rashford and Newcastle's Tino Livramento, who both pulled out the last squad prior to any matches being played, also miss out with respective hip and knee injuries.

Como's Trevoh Chalobah is another absentee, while Manchester City's Nico O'Reilly and Rico Lewis have also not been selected.

James Garner of Everton and Nottingham Forest's Morgan Gibbs-White retain their places after being added to England's last squad prior to any fixtures being played, while Arsenal's Ben White and Inter Milan's Djed Spence return for the first time since the summer.

The Arsenal pair of Declan Rice and Ezri Konsa, who both withdrew from the last England party, are fit and selected.

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