Rooney Calls Trent Alexander-Arnold's England Snub Mind-Boggling

Former England captain Wayne Rooney called it "mind-boggling" that Trent Alexander-Arnold was not included in Thomas Tuchel's final squad before the head coach names his World Cup selection.

Alexander-Arnold has featured regularly for Real Madrid since recovering from a thigh problem in January. He was overlooked for England's friendlies against Uruguay and Japan in March, despite Chelsea right-back Reece James missing out through injury. Arsenal full-back Ben White started both games and scored England's opener in the 1-1 draw with Uruguay.

"No disrespect to Ben White – I think he's a fantastic player – but for him to be in the squad and playing ahead of Trent is mind-boggling," Rooney said on the Wayne Rooney Podcast.

Newcastle's Tino Livramento, Tottenham's Djed Spence and Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa all made Tuchel's 35-man selection for England's final home friendlies before the World Cup, ahead of Alexander-Arnold. The former Liverpool star, omitted from Tuchel's last four squads, has not played for England since a substitute appearance in a World Cup qualifying win over Andorra in June last year.

Rooney's ex-Everton teammate Phil Jagielka believes Alexander-Arnold deserves a place in the squad for the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the USA. "I think he probably still makes it," Jagielka said. "You need your best players. If [Alexander-Arnold] proves he can play half as well as he played for most of his time at Liverpool, he's definitely worth taking on the plane. If Reece James is fit, you put him in [at right-back]."

Rooney would also start James on the right side of defense this summer, despite labeling the 26-year-old "unreliable" as a full-back. "Reece James isn't the most defensive," Rooney said. "In terms of the lads who are there, you wouldn't say they're the best defensively anyway, [any] of them."

Manchester City's Nico O'Reilly and Newcastle's Lewis Hall are frontrunners for the left-back spot in Tuchel's starting XI. O'Reilly has excelled for Pep Guardiola's side this season with nine goals and six assists in 50 appearances across all competitions.

Hall has stood out for Newcastle amid a tough season under Eddie Howe, playing in 44 games and helping the team reach the Champions League's last 16.

Jagielka admires O'Reilly, who can also play midfield, but said the 21-year-old must shore up defensively to claim England's top left-back role. "I really, really enjoy watching O'Reilly, but he gets caught out of defence," Jagielka said. "He doesn't get asked to play left-back when he's at Manchester City. I'd go O'Reilly at this moment in time, but there's literally nothing between him and Lewis."

Rooney prefers Manchester United's Luke Shaw, England's starter at left-back for Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup. "We don't need our full-backs to be the most attacking; we need them to defend," Rooney said. "Keep the balance and let the attacking player win you the games. Luke Shaw can't [attack] as much now, but what he can do is defend."