Ben White ‘to make shock return to England setup beneath Thomas Tuchel’ following two years within the chilly – after Arsenal star refused to play beneath Gareth Southgate after rift with coach
- The 27-year-old has been mainstay at the Gunners but has been in England exile
- He reportedly fell out with Steve Holland in 2022 but now wants a shock return
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Ben White is reportedly set for a dramatic England comeback after a two-year self-imposed exile following a feud with senior coaching staff.
The Arsenal defender has gone from strength to strength in the right-back position for Mikel Arteta‘s impressive side but his versatility is increasingly being missed by the Three Lions after he ruled himself out of selection in 2022.
The 27-year-old last played for his national team in March that year, coming off the bench in an international friendly against Ivory Coast for his fourth cap, and was selected for the winter World Cup in Qatar.
But White left the camp midway through the tournament, citing personal reasons, and it is widely believed his departure was a result of a falling out with Gareth Southgate‘s assistant coach Steve Holland.
The Gunners star has not played for England since, having refused to be considered for the Euro 2024 squad this summer, but is in line to make himself available once again under new boss Thomas Tuchel, talkSPORT reports.
Ben White is reportedly ready to make a shock comeback for England after two years away
The defender last donned a Three Lions shirt in a friendly win over Ivory Coast in March 2022
It would then be up to new boss Thomas Tuchel to accept him back into the England setup
Presenter Adrian Durham said on his show on Wednesday: ‘I’ve heard from a very good source that Arsenal’s Ben White will be making himself available for selection in March.
‘That will be when England play for the first time under Thomas Tuchel.
‘I’m fascinated to see if Tuchel thinks “yes, I’ll have him straight back in, he’s a top four player, he’s playing regularly for Arsenal, so he gets straight back in”.
‘Or, whether he says to himself “this is somebody who didn’t care about England, so no I’m not going to have him back in”.’
The England camp has descended into chaos over this international break with nine players having pulled out of the squad ahead of two vital fixtures against Greece and Ireland. They face the former in Athens on Thursday night.
Eight of Lee Carsley‘s original squad withdrew on Monday, and it was confirmed on Wednesday night that Jarrad Branthwaite will also not be travelling.
The Everton defender has been training away from the main squad this week and will now return to his club after failing to shake off an issue that has troubled him in the opening weeks of the campaign.
He has been replaced in the squad by Liverpool‘s Jarell Quansah.
It is believed White fell out with Gareth Southgate’s assistant Steve Holland (right) at Qatar 22
Lee Carsley has suffered nine players dropping out of vital matches against Greece and Ireland
Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite has been forced to pull out of the squad due to injury
Captain Harry Kane slammed teammates for dropping out of the Three Lions squad
England captain Harry Kane has criticised his teammates for dropping out, suggesting they have ‘taken advantage of a tough period of the season’, before insisting playing for the Three Lions should ‘come before anything’.
Asked what he wanted players to remember from Gareth Southgate’s reign, Kane told ITV: ‘I think the joy to play for England. I think he brought that back.
‘I think England comes before anything. It comes before club and it is the most important thing you play as a professional footballer. Gareth was hot on that and he wasn’t and he wasn’t afraid to make decisions if that started to drift from certain players.
‘It’s a shame this week obviously. I think it’s a tough period of the season and maybe that’s been taken advantage of a little bit. I don’t really like it if I’m totally honest. I think as I just said there England comes before anything, any club situation.’
White’s return is unlikely to be immediate with the Gunners defender facing a spell on the sidelines after undergoing a knee procedure.
The Englishman has started every match he has been fully fit for this season and his form at right-back for Arteta’s side could be enough to convince Tuchel to bring him back into the fray.
