For the first time since becoming the head coach of the England national team, Thomas Tuchel is expected to call up at least one Manchester United player to the latest squad. Among them, Harry Maguire is the most likely to be recalled.
The fact that Kobbie Mainoo is gradually regaining his form and playing more regularly means he is also trying to compete for a spot in the list. Meanwhile, Luke Shaw still has a chance, albeit not great, to participate before Tuchel announces the list of 25 players to participate in the World Cup.
No Man United players have been called up to the England national team in the past 18 months, since Mainoo and Maguire last appeared in September 2024. However, with both currently in the main squad under Michael Carrick, along with a 7-match winning streak in the club's last 9 matches, they have partly affirmed their value and opened up opportunities to return to the national team.
Maguire's experience and leadership ability, with 64 appearances for the England national team and many major tournaments, help him become a bright candidate, especially when he has fully recovered from prolonged injuries in 2025.
In midfield, James Garner is directly competing with Mainoo after a series of impressive performances in Everton's colors, notably the match against Arsenal last weekend. The opportunity to be called up to the national team for the first time is very close for the player who just turned 25.
A big question mark for Mainoo is the fitness issue, as he has never played all 90 minutes in the Premier League recently. At the same time, his form was not really stable before Carrick took over the team.
On the left flank, injury history makes Luke Shaw still a potentially risky option, especially in the context of a major tournament requiring a high intensity of competition. This makes Lewis Hall stand out as a more feasible option, alongside Tino Livramento - a player who can play flexibly on both wings.
Meanwhile, on the right wing, Trent Alexander-Arnold has a great opportunity to return to the national team after regularly playing for Real Madrid, especially when Reece James is injured. Tuchel is also highly appreciated for this defender's playing ability.
Jude Bellingham is likely to still be called up even though he is in the process of recovering from a hamstring injury. He has returned to training, and although he is not sure he can play fully in the friendly matches with Uruguay and Japan, Tuchel still wants to keep him in the squad to prepare for the World Cup campaign.
Position number 10 is a difficult problem for Tuchel when there are so many quality options such as Bellingham, Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers, Phil Foden and Eberechi Eze.
Recent impressive performances help Eze score strong points, especially with versatility in his playing style. Meanwhile, Palmer is facing the risk of fierce competition due to unstable form at Chelsea, although the statistics are still quite good with 6 goals and 3 assists in 2026.
Conversely, Foden is disappointing when he has not scored and has only 1 assist in the last 16 matches for Manchester City.
In attack, Harry Kane is still an irreplaceable choice when continuing to show impressive scoring form in Bayern Munich's colors, with 17 goals and 2 assists since the beginning of the year.
Meanwhile, backup option Ollie Watkins has declined when he has only scored 3 goals since the beginning of the year. This may make Tuchel have to consider other options such as Danny Welbeck or Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
As usual, Tuchel will have to make difficult decisions before the upcoming international holiday. When the World Cup is only about 12 weeks away, along with the last two friendly matches before finalizing the list, all choices or eliminations at this time are of particular importance.
