🔗 Share this article

Thomas Tuchel has declared that he has "no conflict" with Phil Foden following these players were left out the Three Lions squad for upcoming fixtures against Latvia and Wales.

The midfielder did not earn a recall even after returning from a shoulder issue, while the Manchester City and Everton players also miss out although showing a return to form with their respective clubs.

The German manager mentioned that the 22-year-old desired to be part of the squad, after a conversation with him on the phone.

"Bellingham is a special player, and for exceptional talents there can always be special rules," the coach said about Bellingham, who's made just one start since returning to full health.

"However we decided to maintain the simple decision of calling up the same group.

"Bellingham consistently merits to be here. There is also the situation that he has not quite found his optimal form again at his club - he has not finished a full game.

"The player wanted to be called up. We had a telephone conversation."

Tuchel was keen to highlight his positive relationship with the midfielder following Tuchel apologized to him earlier this year for describing his on-pitch behavior as "disgusting" in a televised interview.

Tuchel explained that he uttered those terms "without meaning to" and promised to be more careful going forward.

Inquired if he had any issue with the player, he said: "None. There is also no problem with Phil Foden or Jack Grealish.

"Foden is back to impacting and shaping games for his club. Jack is very close to returning to the top form of himself.

"There exists no personal problem."

Saka taking the place of the injured Madueke is the only change to the previous team, with Loftus-Cheek and Quansah retaining their places after joining as late additions previously due to fitness concerns.

The Three Lions face Wales in a non-competitive match at Wembley on this Thursday before a qualifying match in Riga on October 14.

Should the team win in Latvia, they will need a up to two points from their final two matches - against Serbia and Albania in next month - to earn a spot in the upcoming World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

Strong Performance By the Manager

England delivered their best display by some distance under the manager's guidance when they defeated the Serbian team five-nil on the road in Belgrade in their previous match.

The coach says that performance made it an straightforward choice to keep mostly the same squad, though "there are no certainties" for any player regarding selection.

"Our previous gathering was only three and a half weeks ago and the cohesion and spirit was on the highest level. That is the reason we decided to call up the identical players to this session," he said.

"Foden is in a excellent run of form. Adam Wharton merits to be with us. Jones and Trevoh Chalobah are earning playing time with their teams.

"There are players who deserve to be here. Palmer is injured and is a special player. It will always be like this.

"Are we a stronger side with Bellingham? Absolutely. But I mentioned before, what do we do if he is unavailable before the tournament? Do we simply give up?"

The Manager's Press Conference Gets Noticed

The England manager once more gave a headline-grabbing press briefing.

He, a master of managing his relationship with the media, began with an opening statement to explain his reasoning for his selections.

Bellingham is ready to play and expressed interest to join to camp, but Tuchel has said he preferred not to change the squad significantly after a impressive five-goal win over their opponents - where the boss noted team spirit was extremely strong.

But with Tuchel not including Bellingham, and his frequent comments about team spirit, it is hard not to link the two - even though he insisted multiple times how Bellingham is "special" and that there is "no problem" between Tuchel and one of the national team's star players.

Tuchel has consistently made it evident that he wanted to make the England squad seem like a club team and, by keeping the identical selection after a big victory, he has achieved that. But the questions will come again in the next camp if England win well in these upcoming fixtures.