England: Liverpool star among uncapped trio in Carsley’s last squad as Rogers misses out

Lewis Oldham
England U21 forward Cole Palmer and head coach Lee Carsley
England interim boss Lee Carsley and Cole Palmer.

Interim boss Lee Carsley has named three uncapped players in his final England squad but he has not included Aston Villa standout Morgan Rogers.

Carsley has his final two games as England’s interim boss this month as his side faces Greece and the Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Nations League.

Former Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel was appointed during last month’s international break, but he will not take charge until the start of next year.

Following last month’s disappointing 2-1 loss against table-toppers Greece, second-placed England are three points adrift of the summit and likely require two victories from their remaining games to win the group.

A report on Thursday morning revealed Carsley had a ‘major injury crisis’ as six of his key players are ‘doubts’ ahead of this international break.

Carsley’s final squad as England interim boss was officially announced on Thursday afternoon. Uncapped trio Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United) and Taylor Harwood-Bellis (Southampton) were included.

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The notable omissions include Aston Villa standout Morgan Rogers and Chelsea captain Reece James. John Stones and Kobbie Mainoo also miss out.

The full England squad is as follows.

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Southampton)

Defenders: Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Rico Lewis (Manchester City), Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle), Taylor Harwood-Bellis (Southampton)

Midfielders: Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Angel Gomes (Lille), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Curtis Jones (Liverpool).

Forwards: Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham).

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On his decision to include Hall and Harwood-Bellis, Carsley said: “Both players who have played a lot of minutes this season, showed they can play at a high level. I know them both really well.

“Taylor is a player who really deserves it, he’s a brilliant captain.

“Lewis has taken his time to settle in but has shown he can be consistent. He’s got a great left foot. It’s a good challenge to see if he can maintain that squad.

“I found a real big challenge of this job is to pick the squad. There are four or five players that can be disappointed they didn’t make this squad because they are having good seasons.

“We know a lot of the squad are managing injuries. Hopefully, we get a full set and pick the strongest team we can.”

On Tuchel, he added: “He hasn’t had any influence on the squad selection.

“I congratulated him via text. He is highly respectful of the job I am doing. I see this as a massive privilege, the trust the FA have placed in me and my team.

“My role will be back with the under-21s. A role I’m really privileged to do. With that there is total support from the senior team. I’m in a better position now to do that.”