Thomas Tuchel defends ‘standout’ Arsenal star after England fan criticism | Football

Thomas Tuchel has urged England supporters to stop booing Ben White and insists he has been a ‘standout’ player for Arsenal.

White made himself unavailable for England selection during Gareth Southgate’s reign after he left the squad during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

It is understood that White was involved in a bust-up with Southgate’s assistant Steve Holland during England’s World Cup campaign shortly before leaving the squad.

In March this year, White made his first appearance for England in four years as he came off the bench to score the opening goal in the 1-1 draw with Uruguay at Wembley.

However, White was booed by a section of England supporters at Wembley for his decision to make himself unavailable for the Three Lions.

‘We were not happy about this,’ Tuchel said after announcing his latest England squad on Friday.

‘We could understand the disappointment of the fans with what happened before but I think this is expressed now and this should be a closed book because I think everyone could also see the investment of Ben, the quality of Ben and how he presented himself in the March camp before the World Cup.

‘He did excellent, scored for us and then I think he committed a foul and we conceded. It was very eventful, not so easy to come back. When I speak to him, I always feel the hunger to come back, the excitement. He missed the last camp.

England squad for Croatia and Spain matches

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Jason Steele (Brighton & Hove Albion), James Trafford (Leeds United)

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Marc Guehi (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United), Ezri Konsa (Arsenal), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Djed Spence (Inter Milan), Ben White (Arsenal)

Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Manchester City), Jobe Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), James Garner (Everton), Josh King (Fulham), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Declan Rice (Arsenal)

Attackers: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Anthony Gordon (Barcelona), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool), Morgan Rogers (Chelsea)

‘He is the standout player for Arsenal in a position where we struggle with injuries somehow and we have a lot of changes.

‘Trevoh Chalobah is not in camp so that makes maybe Jarell Quansah half a full-back and half a centre-back in camp and gives Ben the opportunity to impose himself again.

‘Every time I see Arsenal, I see a very strong Ben White in this position. He deserves to open a new chapter, he deserves positive feedback from the crowd.

‘He is one of our players and we want everyone to be supported. This is what helps the team the most and I think we are there now to write a new chapter with him.’

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