Mirror

Steven Gerrard questions Trent Alexander-Arnold England snub and makes World Cup claim

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Daily Mirror IconSportFootballTrent Alexander-ArnoldReal Madrid star Trent Alexander-Arnold was left out of Thomas Tuchel's England squad for friendlies against Uruguay and Japan with Tino Livramento and Djed Spence preferredLiverpool icon Steven Gerrard has expressed surprise at Trent Alexander-Arnold's omission from England's squad for the upcoming international break. The Real Madrid star was overlooked in Thomas Tuchel's 35-man selection for the friendly matches against Uruguay and Japan.Tino Livramento and Djed Spence were chosen as England's right-backs, with Reece James sidelined due to injury.



"Very much so," he responded when asked if Tuchel's decision had taken him aback.READ MORE: England squad named as Thomas Tuchel hands out recalls ahead of World Cup"Listen, we've got some good options at right-back, Reece James is world class, I really like Livramento, I know he's had a couple of injuries but he can play both sides. I understand the selection, but I just think, 'is Trent among the best 35 players in this country?' Of course he is."There's going to be certain games where England have to open the door, they might be against a low block where it's really frustrating and Trent is one of these players who can come off the bench and just completely change the game with one pass, he's that level of a player.""So I am surprised and I'm disappointed for him.

Is it where he (Tuchel) doesn't want a group of players where those who aren't going to be in the XI that might be different people around the place..."There's a lot that gets taken into consideration before you select a squad across a six-week period rather than for a one-off game."Tuchel offered an explanation for the decision during his press conference on Friday. "I have a very clear picture of what Ollie can give us, so I want to have a look at two other players to get a better picture and have a clearer opinion."The right-backs (we have) offer slightly different profiles (to Alexander-Arnold), the evidence is we were good in September-November than anything from Trent."I played many times against him and suffered many times when he played against my teams.