Former England captain Wayne Rooney said it was “unbelievable” that Trent Alexander-Arnold was not included in Thomas Tuchel’s final squad ahead of the manager’s World Cup selections.
Alexander-Arnold has featured regularly for Real Madrid since returning from a thigh injury in January but was overlooked for England’s friendlies against Uruguay and Japan in March despite Chelsea right-back Reece James missing injured.
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Arsenal full-back Ben White started both games, scoring the first goal in England’s 1-1 draw with Uruguay.
Rooney told the Wayne Rooney Podcast: “I don’t mean any disrespect to Ben White, I think he’s a fantastic player, but for him to get into the team and get ahead of Trent is unbelievable.”
Newcastle United’s Tino Liveramento, Tottenham Hotspur’s Jed Spence and Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa are all ahead of Alexander-Arnold in Tuchel’s 35-man squad for England’s final home friendly before the World Cup.
The former Liverpool star has been left out of Tuchel’s last four squads and has not featured for his country since coming on as a substitute in the World Cup qualifying win over Andorra last June.
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However, Rooney’s former Everton team-mate Phil Jagielka believes Alexander-Arnold deserves a place in the squad for the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
“I think he might still be successful,” Jagielka said. “You need the best players.
“if [Alexander-Arnold] Proving he can deliver half the performance he did for much of his time at Liverpool, he’s definitely worth taking on the plane. If Reece James is fit, you play him [at right-back]”.
Rooney will also start James at right-back this summer, despite describing the 26-year-old full-back as “unreliable”.
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“Reece James is not the best defender,” Rooney said. “As far as the lads on the field, you wouldn’t say they’re the best defensively; [any] them. “
‘There is no relationship whatsoever between O’Reilly and Hall’
On the other side of the defence, Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly and Newcastle’s Lewis Hall are widely regarded as the front-runners for the left-back spot in Tuchel’s starting XI.
O’Reilly has impressed for Pep Guardiola’s side this season, making 50 appearances in all competitions, scoring nine goals and providing six assists.
Hall, meanwhile, has been one of Newcastle’s standout performers after a frustrating season for Eddie Howe’s side, making 44 appearances to help the Magpies reach the last 16 of the Champions League.
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While Jagielka has great admiration for O’Reilly, who can also play in midfield, the former centre-back believes the 21-year-old must improve his defensive abilities to become England’s first-choice left-back.
“I really enjoyed watching O’Reilly play, but he got caught on defense,” Jagielka said. “When he was at Manchester City, he wasn’t asked to play at left-back.
“I’d go with O’Reilly at the moment but there’s really no relationship between him and Lewis.”
Rooney said he would choose Manchester United’s Luke Shaw – England’s starting left-back at Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup.
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“We don’t need our full-backs to be the most attacking ones; we need them to defend,” Rooney said. “Keep the balance and let the attacking players win the game for you.
“Luke Shaw can’t [attack] It’s the same now, but all he can do is defend. “
Rooney: Tuchel still looking for squad
Tuchel fielded an experimental squad against Uruguay and Japan, with City playmaker Phil Foden playing a false nine against Japan in the absence of Bayern Munich striker and England captain Harry Kane due to injury.
While Rooney admires Tuchel for using these games to take a closer look at some of his fringe players, he feels the former Chelsea boss should have already made his decision on the majority of the squad.
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“We created pressure,” Rooney said. “I like what Tuchel is doing but I still think that at this stage you should put a question mark on one or two players.
“It looks like he’s still trying to figure out the rest of his squad, with 10 players. [starting] players. “
England will face Croatia in Dallas on June 17 (22:00 BST) and Ghana six days later (21:00 BST) in Boston.
Their final group game will be against Panama in New Jersey on 27 June (22:00 BST).