England: Cole Palmer to withdraw, Morgan Gibbs-White called up

Cole Palmer is ultimately not expected to take part in England’s next international break. The Chelsea forward is set to withdraw from the squad for workload-management reasons, while Morgan Gibbs-White has been called up by Thomas Tuchel to replace him.

Palmer had returned to the England squad for this break after being left out of the World Cup squad. The 24-year-old has played in all seven of Chelsea’s matches in all competitions since the start of the season, scoring four goals and providing two assists.

He also played the full match in Chelsea’s 3-0 defeat by Brentford on Friday at the Gtech Community Stadium. His withdrawal comes after his previous campaign had already been disrupted by physical problems. In 2025-2026, Palmer made 34 appearances for Chelsea, including 24 starts in the Premier League.

Gibbs-White returns to the England squad

To cover for his absence, Thomas Tuchel has recalled Morgan Gibbs-White. The Nottingham Forest attacking midfielder had been unexpectedly left out of England’s World Cup squad, despite finishing the 2025-2026 season with 15 league goals.

Gibbs-White has already scored his first goal of the season for Forest, in the 2-2 draw against Liverpool. He has six caps for England and had not played for the Three Lions since October 2025, when he came on in the friendly win over Wales (3-0).

The 26-year-old was in Dubai after Forest’s defeat by Coventry City on Saturday. He cut his holiday short and is now expected to join the England camp.

Rashford and Mainoo also doubtful

Tuchel’s squad could still change. Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo are among the players whose participation remains uncertain. Rashford is suffering from a hip problem that Manchester United have been monitoring since the World Cup. He was substituted in the 77th minute on Sunday against Fulham. After the match, United manager Michael Carrick explained that his forward had been forced off because of a physical problem.

Mainoo, meanwhile, played 80 minutes at Craven Cottage, but an injury could also prevent him from joining up with the national team. England are due to play four Nations League matches during this break. Tuchel’s side will face Spain at Wembley on September 26, followed by the Czech Republic in Prague on September 29. They will then travel to Croatia on October 3 before facing the Czech Republic again at Wembley on October 6.

Nouya M'toama

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