Thomas Tuchel is set to name his first England squad on Friday. (Image: Getty.)
icon Ray Parlour advised to avoid calling up Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly in the new boss’ first international squad, though he would not be surprised if their breakthrough seasons prompted inclusions. Tuchel is set to name a 26-man squad for the first time to kickstart his Three Lions tenure, with several Gunners in the running.
will certainly be aiming to leave an impression on Tuchel while claiming his 63rd and 64th caps. He could be joined by right-back , who fell out with the previous regime but .
will miss qualifiers against Albania and Latvia through injury but his club understudy, Nwaneri, has been tipped by many to earn his first call-up.
And he may well be joined by Lewis-Skelly, who has largely kept £42million summer signing out of the team at left-back. The national team has an issue in that position through Luke Shaw and Lewis Hall’s unavailability, coupled with Ben Chilwell losing his place at before being loaned to .
But Parlour believes that Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly’s immediate future may be better served with the Under-21s as opposed to a senior nod.
Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly could receive maiden England call-ups. (Image: Getty)
“For sure,” Parlour replied when asked by Express Sport with NetBet Sports Betting if both teenagers could get calls from Tuchel. “They are both performing on the biggest stage of all, the and and look like they belong.
“So it wouldn’t surprise me if they get called up for the England squad next month, but maybe the 21s would be a better start for them. However, with not many top left-backs in form and playing well and also on the right-hand side of the front three for England as well, both could go straight in.”
FA CEO Mark Bullingham revealed that Tuchel had a long-list of approximately 55 players to whittle down from, of which Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly would likely feature on.
Lewis-Skelly will be compared to fellow England hopefuls Djed Spence, Tino Livramento, Tyrick Mitchell and Chilwell, having made five appearances for the Under-19s but none of the U21s or senior squad.
Nwaneri has more competition moving forward, where the likes of Phil Foden, and Jarrod Bowen are all vying for a spot on the right flank in Saka’s absence. Even Anthony Gordon, Morgan Rogers, Marcus Rashford and Callum Hudson-Odoi will be putting their hands up for forward spots.
Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly are ’s future, and perhaps England’s too. But if Tuchel heeds Parlour’s warning, the pair will work with Lee Carsley and the very talented youth group at his disposal.