Chelsea star Cole Palmer is set to withdraw from England duty with Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White in line for his first recall into the Three Lions’ fold since October 2025
Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White is set to replace Cole Palmer in the England squad just days after his wife’s outburst. The Chelsea playmaker is reportedly set to withdraw from Thomas Tuchel’s latest selection.
Palmer is managing a small muscle injury he picked up in the weekend’s defeat to Brentford and will no longer play a part. In his place, Forest midfielder Gibbs-White is due to earn his first recall into the England squad in just under a year, having not been handed a spot in Tuchel’s original selection.
Explaining that decision at the time, the England boss said: “It makes no sense to nominate three, four, five number 10s. It just does not help anyone. We can see the form that Morgan [Gibbs-White] is in.
“It’s one thing to be nominated, but it’s another thing to perform. This also counts, especially Cole needs to step up to justify the nomination.”
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Tuchel’s explanation of Gibbs-White’s original omission did not appear to go down well with the latter’s wife Britney De Villiers. She took to Instagram to post a picture emphasising the fact that Gibbs-White is the only player in the Premier League so far this season who has created five-plus chances in every game that he has played.
Gibbs-White has one goal and two assists for Forest so far this season, having scored 18 times and notched seven assists last term. In all, he has earned six caps for England since making his debut in 2024 under Lee Carsley.
Elsewhere, Palmer has been told to ignore the advice of Chelsea’s medical staff and join up with England regardless. Speaking on talkSPORT, Jamie O’Hara said: “I’ve had medical staff try to turn around to me and say, ‘No, you should only play 60 minutes.
“How about no? How about, ‘I’m in charge of my own destiny? I’m in charge of my football career. You ain’t in charge of my football career, I am.’
“Then Cole Palmer has to be a man and say, ‘No, I’ve been out, I’ve missed out on the England squad. I’ve missed a World Cup last season because I was injured and I weren’t playing, and I come back and I wasn’t fit.
“‘Now I am fit, and I’m ready to go and Thomas Tuchel called me up, I’m going, and if you say I’m not going, I’m still going, I’m getting in my car and I’m driving there to St George’s Park because I want to be involved with England.
“‘And you can’t tell me some geezer who’s in charge of load management can tell me that I ain’t going to play for my country.’ Do one.”‘
Palmer might not be the only player to pull out ahead of the international break. Manchester United duo Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo are also both doubts.
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