With the WorldCup 2026 qualifiers on the doorstep, Morgan Gibbs-White replaces Cole Palmer after he was ruled out due to injury in Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad.
Many sources suggested that Cole Palmer picked up muscle injury at training.
“It was reported yesterday that Palmer picked up the injury in training on Saturday and not in the game against Copenhagen where he was brought on at half time as The Blues struggled against their opposition. This is incorrect.”
However, according to Chelsea Insider, he had muscle fatigue in his hamstring and a bit of tightness.
Palmer came to the match against Copenhagen. Initially, he felt pain, but he was fine and able to finish the game. However, once the game was over, the tightness in his hamstring grew, and he was not feeling so well. Thus, he missed his gym session the next day.
During the training on Saturday, Cole felt the same pain again, and that was when he was pulled out of the squad to arrange a scan to check the extent of the damage.
“He needs a scan, it is planned for Monday morning. It’s a muscle problem. Probably in Cole’s case it will give him some rest physically and mentally. It could be good,” said Chelsea’s coach Enzo.
According to the coach, this injury hiatus will give Palmer a much-needed break, both physically and mentally.
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Who’s Morgan Gibbs-White?
The talented midfielder, Morgan Gibbs-White, is currently playing club soccer for Nottingham Forest. He has been pretty good for this season, and at age 25, he holds an impressive five goals as well as seven assists in 25 matches.
His international debut with England came in September last year, and since then, he’s been doing pretty well for himself.
He was also part of the U-21 squad, which conquered the European Champions Tournament in 2023, another major achievement in football.
Although it is sad news for Cole, given the unfortunate injury, Morgan Gibbs-White is quite excited about being on the national side for the qualifiers match against Albania and Latvia at Wembley.
England Squad for the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers:
| Goalkeepers | Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Southampton), James Trafford (Burnley). |
| Defenders | Dan Burn (Newcastle United), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Reece James (Chelsea), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Jarell Quansah (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (AC Milan, loan from Manchester City). |
| Midfielders | Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Jordan Henderson (Ajax), Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest). |
| Forwards | Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Marcus Rashford (Aston Villa, loan from Manchester United), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham Hotspur). |
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