England coach Thomas Tuchel on Friday recalled striker Ivan Toney to the England squad after an impressive season with Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli and Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah earned his first call up to the national team.
Arsenal fullback Ben White and West Ham United’s Jarrod Bowen were left out as Tuchel named a 26-man squad for the World Cup qualifier against Andorra on June 7 and a friendly three days later against Senegal.
England coach Thomas Tuchel on Friday recalled striker Ivan Toney to the England squad after an impressive season with Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli and Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah earned his first call up to the national team.
Arsenal fullback Ben White and West Ham United’s Jarrod Bowen were left out as Tuchel named a 26-man squad for the World Cup qualifier against Andorra on June 7 and a friendly three days later against Senegal.
No current player from either Manchester City or Manchester United made the list with City’s Phil Foden having asked not to be considered and United’s Harry Maguire omitted.
United’s Marcus Rashford, who is on loan at Aston Villa, was left out, but AC Milan loanee Kyle Walker, who is technically still a Man City player although he asked to leave the club in January before moving to Italy, did make the cut.
Ajax Amsterdam’s former Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson retained his place while Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, Atletico Madrid’s Conor Gallagher and Trent Alexander-Arnold were all included in a Tuchel squad for the first time.
The inclusion of the 29-year-old Toney was the main talking point though with the former Brentford striker having not featured in an England squad since 2024.
Banned for eight months in 2023 for breaching the FA’s rules on betting, Toney left Brentford for Al-Ahli last summer and has scored 22 goals in 29 league appearances.
Only Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals in the Saudi Pro League this season with Toney ahead of the likes of Karim Benzema and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
“We saw goals — decisive goals and the big title,” Tuchel said of Toney’s season. “He had a massive contribution to the Asian Champions League title for his club.
“I didn’t have the opportunity until today to see him live in Saudi Arabia so we took the possibility to fly him in to our camp to watch him live within the group and see his personality and see his quality.”
Chalobah spent part of the season on loan at Crystal Palace but was recalled by Chelsea in January.
“Trevoh has stepped up massively since he came back to Chelsea,” Tuchel said. “Since the last camp — even before — he was already on our radar but since the last camp, in the last months, he had a major contribution in the run of Chelsea.
“They’re still fighting for Champions League and he was one of their most consistent and best defenders so we think he deserves the call up and maybe get his first cap.
“At the moment Trevoh is a little bit ahead of Harry (Maguire).”
Quizzed on his selections, Tuchel said Henderson “takes care of all the standards in the group” while “it was not the moment” for soon-to-be-father White.
He also said Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton would benefit more from becoming a “leader” in the under-21 squad.
England top Group K after Tuchel’s reign began with 2-0 and 3-0 home wins against Albania and Latvia in March. They face Andorra away in Barcelona before taking on Senegal in a friendly at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground.
While Andorra are 173rd in FIFA’s rankings, 19th-placed Senegal will offer more of a test for Tuchel’s side.
“It will be a nice occasion because Senegal are a strong team, high up in the international ranking, so it will be a good test and a necessary test,” the German said.
“This is maybe the last chance to integrate more players and see more players in our environment and see how they behave and see the quality and what they can bring.”
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), James Trafford (Burnley)
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Dan Burn (Newcastle United), Trevoh Chalobah (Chelsea), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Reece James (Chelsea), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Kyle Walker (AC Milan, loan from Manchester City)
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Jordan Henderson (Ajax), Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa)
Forwards: Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ivan Toney (Al-Ahli), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
