2026 World Cup: England head coach Thomas Tuchel addresses shocking calls as controversial Three Lions squad is confirmed

England head coach Thomas Tuchel said that he was "a bit surprised" by Harry Maguire's public reaction to being left out of the Three Lions squad for the 2026 World Cup.

Maguire was just one of a number of major absentees when England's squad for this summer's competition was confirmed, with Chelsea's Cole Palmer, Manchester City's Phil Foden and Real Madrid's Trent Alexander-Arnold also among those left out.

The Manchester United centre-back posted on social media on Thursday night: “I was confident I could have played a major part this summer for my country after the season I’ve had.

“I’ve been left shocked and gutted by the decision. I’ve loved nothing more than putting that shirt on and representing my country over the years. I wish the players all the best this summer.”

Tuchel, though, has said that he is trying to "build the best possible team" and not necessarily assemble "the 26 most talented players".

England squad: Maguire, Palmer, Foden among the notable absentees from Tuchel's selection

"I think from day one we were very clear that we are trying to select and build the best possible team, which is not necessarily to select and collect the 26 most talented players," Tuchel told reporters after his squad for the 2026 World Cup was confirmed.

"Teams win championships, it is as simple as that. What we are trying to achieve in the summer can only be achieved as a team."

When asked about Maguire's post on social media, Tuchel said: 'I was a bit surprised, but I respect his personality a lot, I respect his quality a lot. He had a quality season. I can understand the disappointment. I can see the reason behind the disappointment.

"Still, I was a bit surprised as we had a private conversation. He had the chance to express his feelings, which he did. This is fair enough because I can see all the reasons why he could be in the squad. But the decision is that we stood firmly with our central defenders that carried us through September, October, November."

England squad: Henderson selected due to his presence in the "leadership group"

Jordan Henderson is perhaps the biggest surprise of the players selected considering that the midfielder is now 35 and in the final stages of his career.

However, Tuchel has explained his reasoning behind his selection.

"Some of them are part of a leadership group that took ownership and set the standards high... and it was a decision for these 26 players, even if it feels as it's against these players," said the German.

"There were difficult phone calls. For some of them, it's just a positional thing to have a balanced squad so we don't bring five No 10s. Even if it was painful, I think it was the right call for England.

"It is truly exciting and a great privilege to be able to name an England squad for the World Cup. It has been a tough process to decide on the nomination, but I have full belief in this group of players. They all deserve their place."

Ivan Toney, Dan Burn, Djed Spence and Jarell Quansah are also among the surprise names in the squad, but the countdown is now firmly on to the World Cup, with England opening their Group L campaign against Croatia on June 17.

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