Copy linkFacebookXPinterestEmailShare this article 0Join the conversationFollow usAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleNewsletterSubscribe to our newsletterThomas Tuchel has named his most important England squad. It's been described as a, 'crazy decision', a 'shambles' and 'disgraceful' by 'disgusted' and 'shocked' observers. And that's just the Maguires.England will face Croatia, Panama and Ghana at World Cup 2026 in June and Tuchel, taking an international team to a major tournament for the first time, is not hiding the fact that the target is to give England a second World Cup win.Three Lions squads never please everyone, but the reaction to the World Cup squad has been particularly spicy. Thursday's leaked omissions and the long-standing myth of picking based on form haven't done much to ease the friction. You may like England World Cup 2026 squad: Thomas Tuchel's final 26-man selection When is England's World Cup squad announced? No Phil Foden, no Cole Palmer - has Thomas Tuchel got big England World Cup squad calls right? England's busiest players could all be World Cup 2026 startersTuchel and England are striding into the foothills of the biggest World Cup finals in the 96-year history of the competition. FIFA's willingness to dilute the tournament's appeal by expanding it to 48 teams means extra groups and an additional round.The last four teams standing in July will play eight matches in a little over a month in some of the hottest and most humid conditions the game has to offer. It's a risk in terms of player welfare and a challenge for head coaches who intend for their 26-man squads to be competitive.A post shared by England football team (@england)A photo posted by on It's not a new development that a successful World Cup, whether that's defined by getting to the final, the semi-final or something less, is hard work.While the immediate response to Tuchel's announcement of what was left unknown of his squad has focused on the straightforward ins and outs of the likes of Djed Spence and Harry Maguire, Jordan Henderson and Morgan Gibbs-White, there's also a hint of a gamble in the squad's previous workload.Get FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.England's 26 players have played a lot of football a statement of the obvious, perhaps, but something that will surely feel very real in some calf muscles in the United States, Canada and Mexico next month.Tuchel's call-ups have appeared on around 42 club fixtures on average in 2025/26, amassing a total of 81,734 minutes, including the players who've been sidelined at various points. That's not unusual. It's May, after all.Yet it's noteworthy that Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers, who admitted in the wake of the Europa League final that he is feeling tired after 4,555 minutes of action in a mammoth 55 club appearances, is just one of the England players heading across the Atlantic, potentially tickling at their limits. What to read next When is the England World Cup 2026 squad announced? Five England players who face last chance to impress Thomas Tuchel tonight Thomas Tuchel is a massive weapon for England in the big moments. Hes more decisive and thats what wins you games Danny Murphy on the Three Lions difference-maker coach Swipe to scroll horizontallyPlayerPositionClub (2025-26)Season AppsSeason MinsHarry KaneForwardBayern Munich503,949Nico O'ReillyDefenderManchester City534,037Elliot AndersonMidfielderNottingham Forest494,100Ezri KonsaDefenderAston Villa484,171Dean HendersonGoalkeeperCrystal Palace484,320Declan RiceMidfielderArsenal544,334Marc GuehiDefenderManchester City514,342Morgan RogersMidfielderAston Villa554,555Of the most commonly identified players questionably omitted, Maguire, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Trent Alexander-Arnold are the ones with fewer than 2,200 minutes under their belts this season.Seven members of the England squad have played more than 4,000 club minutes and skipper Harry Kane isn't far behind. In terms of minutes played, that's a ton of football left out. Gibbs-White is the only frequently flagged omission to have played more than 4,000 minutes.All seven outfielders with Kane's workload or more can reasonably be expected to start against Croatia at AT&T Stadium on June 17.That won't be a surprise to Tuchel and it won't define England's World Cup fortunes any more than the non-inclusion of Cole Palmer, Phil Foden and Adam Wharton. Que sera, sera, as they say in Krumbach.But in a long tournament under the North and Central American sun, Tuchel might come to look at his bench for a change of pace and see some capable and exciting but also overworked options.Whether that would have justified the selection of Maguire, Alexander-Arnold, Palmer, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Danny Welbeck or Dominic Calvert-Lewin players with fewer than 3,000 minutes on the clock this season is something we'll never know.Chris NeeChris is a Warwickshire-based freelance football writer specialising in West Midlands football, the Premier League, the EFL and the J.League. He is the author of the High Protein Beef Paste football newsletter and owner of Aston Villa Review. He supports Coventry Sphinx.
