England head coach Thomas Tuchel will name his second England squad on Friday, with two fixtures coming up on 7 and 10 June
BBC Sport football news reporter
England manager Thomas Tuchel is set to name a strong squad on Friday, and is unlikely to make deals with clubs despite a heavily congested end of season schedule.
Sources have told BBC Sport the England boss will not offer guarantees to Premier League managers on workload as he wants to work with as many players as possible, for as long as possible.
Tuchel stressed before victories over Latvia and Albania in March that he has a total of just 60 days and 24 sessions with his squad before the 2026 World Cup begins.
The German manager was brought in to replace Gareth Southgate with a remit to win the tournament.
There will be a six-day England training camp from 4-10 June, including a World Cup qualifier in Andorra on 7 June and a friendly against Senegal on 10 June.
Fifa’s expanded Club World Cup, held in the United States, starts less than a week later, running from 15 June – 13 July and features Manchester City, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
The clubs involved in the tournament are eager for nations not just England – to release their players from June’s international window.
However, Tuchel made clear from his first meeting with the players how little time they have together before the World Cup.
As shown by the surprise call-ups of Jordan Henderson, Marcus Rashford and Dan Burn in his first squad, Tuchel is not afraid to make big selection calls and justify them in news conferences.
The FA cited the Club World Cup as a “significant challenge” for protecting player welfare which could also have “financial implications”.
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Follow BBC Sport’s live page on Friday on Tuchel’s England squad announcement and reaction
End of season timeline
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25 May: Final Premier League games
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28 May: Conference League final: Chelsea v Real Betis
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31 May: Champions League final: PSG v Inter Milan
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4-10 June: Six-day England camp including games on 7 June and 10 June
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11-28 June: U21 European Championship
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15 June -13 July: Club World Cup, including Manchester City, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, plus others
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15 June: Bayern play first Club World Cup game
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16 June: Chelsea play first game
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18 June: Man City & Real Madrid play first games
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Mid-July: Pre-season matches begin, including overseas tours
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9 August: Community Shield
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13 August: Uefa Super Cup: Tottenham v Champions League winners
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16 August: Start of 2025-26 Premier League season
Bellingham’s shoulder, Foden ‘struggling’ what are the big decisions?
‘Henderson embodies everything we want’ – Tuchel
Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham will undergo shoulder surgery, but only after the Club World Cup, so will Tuchel decide that if he’s fit enough to play in the US, then his star midfielder should be part of his next camp?
Real-bound Trent Alexander-Arnold could also be called up, with the Spanish side trying to complete his signing from Liverpool before the Club World Cup starts.
Manchester City’s Phil Foden started Tuchel’s first game but has struggled for form this season.
The attacker said he has “struggled” this season because of “things going on off the pitch mentally” and that he has been carrying a bad ankle injury from the Manchester derby on 6 April.
Foden hinted that he “needs a few weeks off” to get it back to 100%, so that could also reignite the club versus country debate if Tuchel picks him.
Harry Kane has been celebrating his first trophy with Bayern Munich and is another one expected to feature for England before going straight to the Club World Cup.
Cole Palmer, who missed the first fixtures under Tuchelis available again, and is another player bound for the Club World Cup, with Chelsea team-mates Reece James, Levi Colwill and Noni Madueke all in contention, with their Europa Conference League final in Poland on 28 May.
On the club versus country debate, Tuchel said in March: “We do what’s good for us. We are in contact with the clubs, we are in high-level monitoring where the statuses are known and we won’t take any unprofessional risks. Because first of all I feel responsible for the players. I don’t want the player to be injured.
“So this is where it is and in the end we take care of ourselves and the clubs take care of themselves, and the main focus is taking care of the players.
“I always accepted it as a club manager. I never got involved in line-ups. I never pushed any national coach because I was hoping that my players get picked.”
Maguire, Eze, Wharton, Delap – ones to watch
Manchester United are squeezing in a post-season trip to Malaysia and Hong Kong in the days after the season finishes. Defender Harry Maguire, injured for Tuchel’s first squad, may be considered to join up when he returns from Asia.
Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White, a late call-up last time after missing out on the initial squad, is another option. And will Ipswich forward Liam Delap, in demand from several Premier League clubs, get a senior call-up?
Aston Villa’s on-loan Rashford has been out in recent weeks with a hamstring injury so his fitness is unknown, while Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon’s form has dipped. That could give Crystal Palace’s FA Cup match-winner Eberechi Eze a clear run at the left-wing spot in Tuchel’s side.
Eze, who scored his first England goal in the win over Lativa in March, has been in excellent form in the latter part of the season, with seven goals in his past six games.
Team-mate Adam Wharton is another option that Tuchel could call upon in midfield. He suffered a concussion which kept him out of the 4-2 win over Wolves on Tuesday, but trained with the senior squad during Tuchel’s first training camp even though he was part of the U21 squad.
The 21-year-old midfielder was building up his fitness during the March international break following injury but now he has built up a run of games Tuchel, who has been a regular visitor to Selhurst Park, could bring him in.
