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Former England captain Wayne Rooney says it is “mind-blowing” that Trent Alexander-Arnold was not included in Thomas Tuchel’s final squad before the manager made his World Cup selections.
Alexander-Arnold has been a regular for Real Madrid since recovering from a thigh problem in January but was overlooked for England’s friendlies. With Uruguay And Japan In March, despite the absence of Chelsea right-back Reece James through injury.
Arsenal defender Ben White started both games and scored England’s opening goal in a 1-1 draw with Uruguay.
“No disrespect to Ben White – I think he’s a fantastic player – but being in the team and playing in front of Trent is a big concern,” Rooney said on the Wayne Rooney podcast.
Newcastle’s Tino Livramento, Tottenham’s DJ Spence and Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa have all been selected ahead of Alexander-Arnold in Tuchel’s 35-man selection for England’s final pre-World Cup friendlies.
The former Liverpool star, who was left out of Tuchel’s last four squads, has not played for his country since coming off the bench. World Cup qualifying victory over Andorra In June last year.
However, Rooney’s former Everton team-mate Phil Jagielka feels Alexander-Arnold should be included in the squad for the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the USA.
“I think he still does,” Jagielka said. “They want your best players.
“If (Alexander-Arnold) proves that he can play fly-half and as he has played most of his time at Liverpool, he certainly deserves to take the plane. If Reece James is fit, you put him in (at right-back).”
Rooney has called the 26-year-old a full-back, but he will start James on the right this summer.
“Reese James is not a very good defender,” Rooney said. “In terms of the guys out there, you wouldn’t say (any of them) are very good defenders anyway.”
