Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi receives his first England call-up but Manchester United duo Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho are left OUT by Gareth Southgate for March friendlies against Switzerland and Ivory Coast
- Marc Guehi has been called up to the England squad for the first time
- The defender has impressed and established himself as a regular this season
- Gareth Southgate watched him in Crystal Palace’s 2-0 victory over Wolves
- Marcus Rashford has been axed following his poor form for Manchester United
- Jadon Sancho was also left out of the squad despite his recent improvement
Marcus Rashford has been axed from the England squad – but there is a first call-up for Marc Guehi from manager Gareth Southgate ahead of the two friendlies with Switzerland and the Ivory Coast.
Jadon Sancho is also a high profile omission from Gareth Southgate’s first squad of the year despite his improvement at Manchester United, though Ben White’s excellent form at Arsenal has earned the defender a recall.
Guehi has impressed for Palace this season, establishing himself as a regular since his £18m move from Chelsea last summer.
Marc Guehi is said to have been called up to the England squad for the first time in his career
England manager Gareth Southgate was impressed as he watched Guehi against Wolves earlier this month, while assistant Steve Holland also saw him play against Manchester City in their goalless draw on Monday.
Guehi has previously been capped 16 times at Under-21 level and was part of the Under-17 side that won the 2017 World Cup.
Sportsmail reported earlier this week, Southgate was considering a clutch of first-time picks for his first squad of 2022 including Guehi and team-mate Tyrick Mitchell who was not included.
Manchester United pair Rashford and Sancho also failed to make the squad – despite the latter’s improvement since the turn of the year.
England manager Gareth Southgate has announced his squad for the friendlies with Switzerland and Ivory Coast
Guehi is among a host of English players who have impressed at Crystal Palace, including Conor Gallagher who has again been called up
Rashford’s absence perhaps comes as no surprise due to the winger’s poor form for the Red Devils this season.
Arsenal defender White has made the squad for the first time since the European Championships last summer.
He was included at Euro 2020 as a replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold but had been left out of their World Cup qualifying squads last autumn.
Southgate said in regards to his inclusion of Guehi: ‘Marc has had a really consistent season.
‘We’ve been really impressed with him on and off the ball, in the biggest games, he has been very calm. We know him well from our junior teams as a World Cup winner.’
On his decision not to pick Sancho, he said: ‘The other attacking players are slightly ahead of them in our thinking.
‘Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling, Jack Grealish, Emile Smith Rowe. Sancho’s performances have undoubtedly improved for Manchester United but he has to do a bit more.’
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