Max Sharpe

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

@Callum16431389 @talkSPORT Clearly quite uneducated then aren’t you, if you had listened to his interviews then you’d know he has specific positions for players and won’t shoehorn in players for the sake of it. Anderson and Henderson are both there in the deeper role.

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

@Callum16431389 @talkSPORT Well mainoo isn’t going to play the full 90 minutes is he? So Scott will most likely come on and replace him in the 8 role

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

@Plettigoal Changed your tune in a matter of hours u melt

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

@HLTCO Nothing wrong with it, it’s quite normal

[Henry Winter @henrywinter]

Jordan Henderson has been down this sweltering road in the US before. It’s not his first rodeo. Henderson was here in Florida 12 years ago, preparing for his first World Cup finals in Brazil, and dodging the thunderstorms that punctuated England’s second warm-up game at the home of the Miami Dolphins. Henderson now heads to his fourth World Cup, and his next England appearance takes him past Michael Owen and alongside Bryan Robson on 90 caps. Only 11 players have represented England’s men team more.

There is a legitimate debate about what Henderson brings to the team at 35 and not even starting for Brentford. Thomas Tuchel has no interest in that debate. England’s head coach keeps stating how much Henderson, a Premier League and Champions League winner, “drives standards” in training. He’s an inspiration to the younger players with his application. He came out early to Florida to acclimatise. You could see his pace-setting in training (below).

After a full hour in the blistering heat and humidity of mid-day training at Palm Beach Gardens, Henderson walks across, apologises for a sweat-soaked handshake and reflects on what still being a part of the international scene means. “Representing England, for me, means absolutely everything. Pretty much everyone knows that over the course of my career how much it means to me.

"I'm very, very honoured to be alongside the people that you've just mentioned, huge figures in English football (Owen and Robson). But for me, it's about the now and looking forward to be the best version of myself, to help this team be ready for a strong World Cup.”

Being the “best version of himself” is a mantra with Henderson. He’s always spoken that way, focusing on accentuating his own talents, never shouting about them. He’s been critiqued all his life, ever since Kenny Dalglish brought him to Liverpool from Sunderland in 2011. He mentions his “shock” on hearing the terrible news about Dalglish, who has just revealed he has cancer. Henderson earlier sent a text to Dalglish. “He's been a huge influence on my career.”

In his early years at Anfield, and after Dalglish had left in 2012, Liverpool kept buying central midfielders, more than 10, signalling some buyer regret. Yet Henderson went on to make nearly 500 appearances. He’s tough; he famously once stood up to Chelsea’s Diego Costa at one point, defending his team-mates.

For a decade, Henderson was a fixture in England’s midfield, dealing with the challenge of 15 rivals. Elliot Anderson and Declan Rice form England’s midfield now, but Henderson will be there, supporting them. “It’s about being themselves (all the players), being confident, and having that arrogance about them when they're playing, but also the humbleness of training and doing the ‘invisible work’, as the gaffer (Tuchel) says.

“Invisible work is making the hard yards, getting back when you lose the ball, the reaction to win the ball back. We have to be ready to sacrifice for each other, be there to support each other because we all know the talent the squad has. If you do that as a team, and work for each other, we have the quality to hurt any opposition.”

Henderson smiles when asked whether England can win the World Cup. He’s heard it all before, endured all the “it’s coming home” hubris before (especially against England’s first group opponents in Dallas, Croatia, back in the 2018 semis). But there is something deeply competitive about Henderson. “It's just about arriving in the best possible mindset, the best possible shape, and be ready to fight for each other for every single yard, every single game. And then, in tournament football, you never know what can happen.” #ENG

[Liverpool News @LFCVine]

As much as I don’t care about Trent anymore, selection Djed Spence over him for England is absolutely criminal.

[Jack Kellard @kellard_]

Having that talent pool of full backs and you’re taking Djed Spence, a player who can’t make the starting eleven of a team in a relegation scrap.

[Paddy Power @paddypower]

“Djed Spence rewarded for Tottenham Hotspur form”.

It’s official. Thomas Tuchel is trying to sabotage England from the inside.

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

Crazy 😂

[David Ornstein @David_Ornstein]

🚨 Trent Alexander-Arnold not named in England squad for 2026 World Cup. Real Madrid right-back absent from recent squads & misses out on #2026FIFAWorldCup. Djed Spence rewarded for Tottenham Hotspur & #ENG form with Tuchel Tuchel selection @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/bmPxW1FTIu

[Henry Winter @henrywinter]

Dan Burn ahead of Harry Maguire is absolutely baffling. On grounds of form, experience, leadership, penalty-taking. Baffling.

[Rory Jennings ⭐ ⭐ @Chelsearory]

When you actually think about it, it’s a disgrace that Thomas Tuchel is England manager, a national embarrassment.

[Henry Winter @henrywinter]

Let’s hope Ben White is ok and reports of suspected ligament damage prove premature. With Jurrien Timber still rebuilding fitness, Cristhian Mosquera may have to fill in at right-back for Arsenal. And England? If White’s season is sadly over then surely Thomas Tuchel has to see the light and recall one of England’s few truly elite game-changers. You know the one.

Trent Alexander-Arnold. Good enough to have won Premier Leagues and Champions League with Liverpool; good enough to play for Real Madrid; too good to leave behind. If White is out, then that leaves Reece James and Alexander-Arnold as the only two English right-backs fit and playing regularly.

Tino Livramento is a major doubt. Ezri Konsa can cover at right-back but is far better at centre-back. Which leaves Djed Spence (who stayed on Spurs bench v Leeds). Is he good enough? Not on his four England showings to date. If England are trailing who do you want Tuchel to bring on: Spence or Alexander-Arnold? 

James starts at right-back for England and it’s good to see him playing for Chelsea again given his injury woes. But what an option Alexander-Arnold would be coming off the bench if England were trailing or heading to penalties. Whipping in a cross or corner; releasing an attacker with one of those raking passes or switch to the left-winger; taking a free-kick, even taking a penalty.

He’s done all that in previous tournaments. At 27, he has the experience - 34 caps and plenty of big games. Tuchel has concerns over Alexander-Arnold’s “profile” - ie his defending. He occasionally does get caught out. He’s not alone in that. But Jurgen Klopp believed in him. So did Carlo Ancelotti. Tuchel and England will need to be bold to win the World Cup. Alexander-Arnold’s positives far outweigh one much-discussed weakness. Be bold. #ENG #RMCF

[The 44 ⚽️ @The_Forty_Four]

Marcus Rashford hits 28 G/A at Barcelona this season…

AND people want Gordon in the squad over him 😂😂😂

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

@justdavenow89 @mcfcmol Well this is a bit rich considering your tweet is grammatically incorrect

[The Touchline | 𝐓 @TouchlineX]

🚨 This pass by Trent is one of the most INSANE passes of this 2025/26 Champions League season!

And Tuchel wants to keep this guy at home for the World Cup! 😂

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

@itvfootball Should be Ivan Toney

[Max Sharpe @MaxSharpee14]

@CraigHope_DM Christ he’s tryna throw it ain’t he hahahaha

[𝕬 @idgafistani]

England are nothing without them.

[Henry Winter @henrywinter]

Still can’t believe that England are going to the World Cup without arguably their best passer. Watching fringe candidates labour at Wembley highlights even more the nonsense of Alexander-Arnold’s omission. He’s a game-changing option from the bench. If you have pace out wide in Gordon/Rashford and Saka/Madueke/Bowen and want to launch a quick counter, TAA can deliver. If England are in a shoutout, he can deliver. Risk/reward. #ENG