Missing from England’s World Cup squad
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Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White ended the best season of his career on Sunday with a direct free kick – it was his 18th goal of the season, plus seven assists. This makes the 26-year-old Englishman the most dangerous midfielder in Europe’s top five leagues. However, it wasn’t enough for England coach Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad.
“I know myself that I have done more than enough to be in the squad,” Gibbs-White is quoted as saying by “The Times”. The attacking midfielders Tuchel has named are Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa) and Eberechi Eze (Arsenal). You can see that the German can make the most of this position in England, as Cole Palmer (Chelsea), who is extremely popular with younger English fans, and Phil Foden (Man City) are also staying at home. In terms of market value, Gibbs-White is on par with Eze at €60 million, while Rogers is ahead at €80 million and Bellingham at €140 million.
“I simply ended up on the wrong side of a decision. I’ve experienced this many times during my career, so I’ll only come back stronger,” said the Nottingham Forest captain. During Tuchel’s term in office, which started on January 1, 2025, Gibbs-White made it into the squad seven times in twelve international matches and was used four times. He was already missing from the last two nominations in November and March.
Tuchel said during the squad presentation: “We are trying to build the best possible team – not simply select the 26 most talented players.” He wants to define his team through team spirit. “We’re together around the clock, not like in club football with one day off. We’ve thought a lot about these soft factors and how we can develop the right chemistry in the team. I think we’ve found the right balance.”
The England squad was unveiled on Friday, with Gibbs-White’s free-kick goal on the final day of the match following two days later. Following this, the Nottingham fans made their displeasure with Tuchel’s decision clear with abusive chants at the German’s expense. It will be difficult for Gibbs-White to have an even better season, but in the end it was not his performance but the strong competition. The fact that Eze was given preference could be due to the fact that there is a four-player Arsenal block in the 26-man squad – from sixteenth-placed Nottingham, only Elliot Anderson made it.
