LONDON: England manager Thomas Tuchel insists Ivan Toney “deserves” his surprise recall for the forthcoming internationals against Andorra and Senegal.
It is a first call-up for the 29-year-old since he left Brentford to join Saudi Arabian club Al-Ahli last August.
Toney, who has scored 22 goals in 29 Pro League games for the Saudi champions, made the last of his six England appearances in the Euro 2024 final defeat by Spain.
“Ivan deserves to be with us, I think, and I’m convinced because he scored over 20 goals this season,” Tuchel said.
“He won a major title with the Asian Champions League, in goals and assists made a huge contribution.
“I thought, why not bring him over and let him travel to us? It’s a good occasion now to also test new players, see new players, meet Ivan first and see him in the environment.”
Tuchel has also given a first senior call-up to Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah.
The Sierra Leone-born Chalobah has played 32 times for Chelsea this season as they chase Champions League qualification and target victory over Real Betis in the UEFA Conference League final on Wednesday.
“He played a fantastic second half of the season with Chelsea. He is very, very consistent on a very high level,” Tuchel said.
Manchester City star Phil Foden was left out just days after opening up about his mental health struggles.
Foden, who is struggling with an ankle injury, revealed his mental state has suffered throughout a difficult season for the forward.
Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham was selected despite reports that he needs surgery on a shoulder problem after the Club World Cup.
Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane, Chelsea’s Cole Palmer and Atletico Madrid’s Conor Gallagher are among eight players in the squad who will also be involved in the Club World Cup in the United States.
England face Andorra in a World Cup qualifier in Barcelona on June 7 before a friendly with Senegal in Nottingham three days later.
The Club World Cup starts just five days after England’s second game of the international break.
“I could see the reasons for the players who go to the Club World Cup to maybe leave a bit earlier, to maybe change the squad,” Tuchel said.
“We had a good discussion over if we nominate the squad without Club World Cup players.
“Very quickly we understood that it’s also important for us. It’s only one year to go until the World Cup.
“So why send players away? We want to cherish and worship every day that we have together, and what signal will be sent to the group to send players away?“
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Bukayo Saka are back in the international fold after injuries ruled them out of England’s wins over Albania and Latvia in World Cup qualifiers in March.
There was no place again for Manchester United defender Harry Maguire, with Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke and West Ham winger Jarrod Bowen also left out.

LIVERPOOL: Arne Slot said Trent Alexander-Arnold “deserves” to be part of Liverpool’s title celebrations despite revealing he was unhappy with the defender’s performances in training at the start of the season.
The England international announced his decision to quit his boyhood club earlier this month and is widely expected to join Real Madrid.
He was booed by Liverpool fans when he came on as a second-half substitute in last week’s 2-2 draw against Arsenal at Anfield and did not play in the 3-2 defeat at Brighton on Monday.
Liverpool, who wrapped up the Premier League title last month with four games to spare, will be presented with the trophy after Sunday’s game against FA Cup winners Crystal Palace.
Slot was asked by reporters on Friday whether he had concerns that the celebrations would be overshadowed by an negative reaction to Alexander-Arnold.
He said he had yet to make a decision on the extent of the right-back’s involvement.
“I haven’t decided on that one yet but I think this should be a day that everybody is going to enjoy,” Slot said.
“It’s been 35 years everybody is waiting for this moment.”
Liverpool lifted the 2020 Premier League trophy behind closed doors due to Covid restrictions.
Slot, in his first season at Anfield, said celebrations after Liverpool sealed the title against Tottenham were special.
“I’m hoping that we can add a moment like this to it and I think everybody that’s in this stadium deserves to be there, the fans, the staff, but also the players,” he said.
“One of my players is Trent so he definitely deserves to be there as well because he’s been part of an incredibly successful season and an incredibly successful (few) years at this club.”


While Slot hopes Alexander-Arnold gets a fond farewell from fans, the Dutchman was critical about the right-back’s efforts in training during his early weeks as Liverpool manager.
“He’s going to leave either way so maybe it’s already a first gift I can give Xabi (Alonso, expected to be the new Real Madrid manager),” he said.
“But I wasn’t completely happy with every single minute how he was on the training ground. So, in my opinion, in certain moments he could do a bit more, to say it mildly.
“I said to him ‘You are a much better defender than everybody tells you, but unfortunately you don’t show it all the time’.”
Slot said he told Alexander-Arnold, 26, that if he was focused there were not many players that could go past him because he is “fast, he’s agile, he has a great mentality.”
“It’s about showing it every single game, because in this world we are judged not only on the 34 games we do well, we are mainly judged on the four games that we don’t do so well,” he said.