Thomas Tuchel said that former Brentford striker Ivan Toney deserves his call-up to the England squad amid a series of changes which has seen other stars such as Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford miss out.
The 29-year-old was last called up and played in the Euro 2024 final against Spain, which England lost narrowly.
It’s the first time Toney has been called up to the squad since he moved to Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli for a reported fee of £40m, but Tuchel is adamant that his assignment is merited.
“He deserves to be with us and I am convinced because he scored over 20 goals for his team this season,” Tuchel said. “He won a major title with the Asian Champions League, he had a big contribution with goals and assists.
“It is a good occasion now to also test new players, see new players in the environment. We decided to nominate three strikers in the squad.
“I had a call with Dom Solanke who deserved to be with us and won a big trophy this season but he was in camp already and I have a clear picture of what he can bring and now is the moment to see new players and get a feel for them in the group.”
Amongst Manchester City midfielder Foden and Aston Villa-loanee Rashford, Ben White is another to miss out – the defender was rumoured to have fallen out with assistant coach Steve Holland but isn’t in the squad for other reasons this time.
Tuchel said: “He was involved in the latest matches of Arsenal but we had a talk and decided now is not the moment because he will become a father very soon, the baby is due right on the exact date of the camp. It is his first child and we wish him and his wife all the best.
"We thought if he comes back it should be with a clear mind and full focus on football which is now not the case. We decided together this is not the camp for him to come back.
"The second reason is although he played lately I think he can still have 10-15% increase in the physical ability. Given all the circumstances we decided that he is not with us.
"100%. He was ready to be selected now but the main was because of family."
"This is a very important camp for us", says Tuchel amid player welfare concerns
England will face Andorra in Barcelona in a World Cup qualifier on June 7 and then take on Senegal at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground in a friendly just three days later.
And although there is inevitable concerns over player welfare, and whether or not some should be rested more than others given the upcoming Club World Cup next month, Tuchel remains immovable with his stance on the situation.
"We will start the camp with 26 players and finish with the same 26 as well,” he said. "I was an advocate and I could see the reason for the players who go to the Club World Cup to maybe leave a little earlier, to maybe change the squad. We had discussions if maybe we chose a squad without Club World Cup players.
"The discussion was very open. Very quickly we also understood this is a very important camp for us with one year to go until the Word Cup. Why send players if we want to cherish every day we have together. What signal would it send to the group to send players away?
"I can understand the argument from especially the clubs who would love to see the players get a rest but we have a strong argument for ourselves and our goals we want to reach. We are building a group and a togetherness. We want to develop a camaraderie and it is only possible if we take every day seriously.
"We will try to manage the minutes of the players of course."
