Harry Maguire revealed the details of the video call in which Thomas Tuchel, England’s head coach, informed him that he would not be part of the squad for this summer’s World Cup. The Manchester United defender admitted to being “surprised” and “devastated” by the decision, which prevented him from achieving one of his major sporting goals. In statements to the podcast The Rest is Football, hosted by Gary Lineker, the England international described the moment he learned of his absence. “He does Face Time with everyone. It’s quite an uncomfortable call,” Maguire confessed. The player also lamented that the news reached the media even before he spoke with the coach. “About half an hour before I was informed that my place was in doubt, something was leaked to the media. That was the most frustrating part.” According to the defender, Tuchel did not provide a concrete justification for his decision. “He told me that, in fact, he couldn’t give me an excuse,” the player explained. The coach only mentioned that he chose to maintain confidence in the defenders who participated in the qualifying phase. “I think he told me he kept the four players who were with him during the qualifiers in the fall and who performed well in those six games. But yes, he told me he couldn’t give me an excuse. Well, that’s football. It was hard to accept.” Age made this opportunity even more valuable for the defender, as it could have been his last chance to participate in a World Cup. “Now I’m 33, so I’ll be 37 at the next World Cup. I wanted to go, not necessarily to play. I didn’t demand to be a starter. I would have been happy to play one minute, as long as I was there with my teammates,” he stated. England will debut in the World Cup this Wednesday against Croatia in the first match of Group L. The team led by Thomas Tuchel will take the field again on June 23 to face Ghana, concluding the group stage on June 27 against Panama.
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