Trent Alexander-Arnold Snubbed from England's 35-Man Squad as Maguire and Mainoo Earn Call-Ups

In a surprising turn of events, Trent Alexander-Arnold has been left out of England's 35-man squad, while Harry Maguire and Kobbie Mainoo have received their first call-ups under Thomas Tuchel. Aston Villa's struggling striker Ollie Watkins has also been omitted, despite Tuchel selecting 10 forwards in an unconventional squad selection that offers fringe players a final audition before the 2026 World Cup. Leeds' Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Tottenham's Dominic Solanke are the two outright strikers called up, along with Harry Kane, to compete for the role of captain's backup in friendlies against Uruguay and Japan at Wembley. Maguire and Mainoo are the Manchester United players Tuchel has called up as England boss, but Luke Shaw has been omitted from this extended squad. Tuchel explained that 'tough decisions come with the job' and that he wants to 'have a look at other players to get a clearer picture.' Everton midfielder James Garner has earned his first inclusion in a senior international squad, while AC Milan defender Fikayo Tomori has made a surprise return to the team. Tuchel says he has chosen this squad to 'open up the competition for plane tickets to the US.' Only 24 of Tuchel's squad will join up for the first friendly against Uruguay, before 11 others arrive in camp ahead of the Japan game. Brighton's backup goalkeeper Jason Steele, who is uncapped and has not played in the Premier League since August 2024, is named in the squad as a 'trial' for a special role planned for the World Cup. Revealing England would take four goalkeepers to the tournament, Tuchel said Steele will 'support the goalkeeper group' and 'take a lot of workload off the other shoulders.' Alex Scott and Nick Pope were named in the November England squad but miss out here, with Pope now having lost his place at club and international level to Aaron Ramsdale. Ramsdale and Man City's James Trafford are in the squad along with first-choice Jordan Pickford and Dean Henderson. Trevoh Chalobah and Reece James were in the November squad but are now out injured. Explaining his extraordinary squad selection, Tuchel said: 'We decided to divide it into two camps, almost. We have a camp where we bring players in who we haven't seen, who haven't played so much to open up the competition for plane tickets to the US.' Sky Sports News football correspondent Rob Dorsett described the 35-player selection as 'fascinating' and 'innovative,' saying it's a new approach and that Tuchel is 'not afraid to rip up the copybook and try things.' The squad includes goalkeepers Dean Henderson, Jordan Pickford, James Trafford, Aaron Ramsdale, and Jason Steele, defenders Dan Burn, Marc Guehi, Lewis Hall, Ezri Konsa, Tino Livramento, Harry Maguire, Nico O'Reilly, Jarell Quansah, Djed Spence, John Stones, and Fikayo Tomori, midfielders Elliot Anderson, Jude Bellingham, James Garner, Jordan Henderson, Kobbie Mainoo, Declan Rice, Morgan Rogers, and Adam Wharton, and forwards Jarrod Bowen, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Eberechi Eze, Phil Foden, Anthony Gordon, Harry Kane, Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, and Dominic Solanke.