Finally, coach Thomas Tuchel also announced the list of 26 players of the England team participating in the 2026 World Cup. And as usual, this squad immediately created many controversies.
Names like Harry Maguire, Lewis Hall, Adam Wharton, Cole Palmer or Phil Foden all attract attention in different ways. However, behind each Tuchel's decision, there are statistical bases.
Below are the figures showing why each player deserves to be in the "Three Lions" squad to North America this summer.
Goalkeeper
Jordan Pickford
Only 3 goalkeepers in the Premier League this season have a better expected goal-stopping rating after shots (xGOT) than Pickford (+3.9).
Dean Henderson
The Crystal Palace goalkeeper has made 101 saves in the Premier League this season - only behind 4 other goalkeepers.
James Trafford
Despite only playing 16 matches for Manchester City in all competitions, Trafford still exceeded expectations by more than 5 goals conceded, conceding 11 goals compared to the xGOT level of 16.04.
Defender
Reece James
After a long period of injury, James has returned strongly with six direct goals in the Premier League this season in just 17 matches - equal to the total achievements of the previous three seasons combined.
Tino Livramento
Among Newcastle players who played over 1,000 minutes this season, only Lewis Hall and Joelinton recovered more balls than Livramento on average every 90 minutes.
John Stones
In World Cup history since 1966, no player has achieved a higher pass accuracy than Stones among those who have made at least 500 passes (95%).
Ezri Konsa
Before the defeat to Japan in March, Konsa participated in England's 11-match winning streak - the best achievement for a "Three Lions" defender in history.
Marc Guehi
Since joining Man City in January, Guehi has quickly made a strong impression. Especially in the victory over Chelsea when he led in the number of accurate passes, cross-line passes, winning contests and interceptions.
Jarell Quansah
After moving to Bayer Leverkusen, Quansah became one of the most effective defensive defenders in the Bundesliga this season.
Dan Burn
In the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Burn averaged 116 accurate passes per 90 minutes - only behind Xavi in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers in the most recent campaign year.
Nico O'Reilly
Man City's young talent has 5 goals and three assists this season, and is used more often by Pep Guardiola than most other players in the squad.
Djed Spence
Spence is present in 8/9 of Tottenham's wins in the Premier League this season, despite Spurs' difficult season.
Midfielder
Declan Rice
Rice created 17 clear chances in the Premier League this season - the most among English players.
Elliot Anderson
The Nottingham Forest midfielder has regained the ball 302 times in the Premier League this season - more than any other player in the top five European leagues.
Kobbie Mainoo
Manchester United have won 18 out of 27 Premier League matches with Mainoo participating this season.
Jordan Henderson
Among Brentford players who have played at least 500 minutes, Henderson has the highest average number of passes per 90 minutes.
Jude Bellingham
Since the beginning of the 2024-2025 season, only 3 midfielders have scored more goals than Bellingham in La Liga.
Eberechi Eze
Eze became the second player in England history to score the first 3 goals when coming on as a substitute, after Harry Kane.
Morgan Rogers
The Aston Villa star just won the Europa League Player of the Year award and had five assists in the tournament.
Striker
Marcus Rashford
Rashford scored 14 goals and had 11 assists for Barcelona this season, achieving an efficiency equivalent to Morgan Rogers but playing 7 fewer matches.
Anthony Gordon
Gordon became the second English player to score at least 10 goals in a Champions League campaign, after Harry Kane.
Bukayo Saka
Saka became the second youngest player in Premier League history to reach 50 goals and 50 assists, only after Wayne Rooney.
Noni Madueke
During his season playing for Chelsea, Madueke once belonged to the group of players with the most shots after each dribble in the Premier League on average every 90 minutes.
Harry Kane
Not counting the FIFA Club World Cup, Kane has scored 58 goals in all competitions this season - at least 17 more than any other player in the top five European leagues.
Ollie Watkins
Watkins has reached 100 goals in all competitions since his debut for Aston Villa on September 15, 2020.
Ivan Toney
Despite surprisingly being called up, Toney still possesses impressive statistics with 42 goals and 11 assists for Al Ahli this season, not to mention his almost perfect penalty-taking ability.
