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Jude Bellingham has been dramatically omitted from England's squad, with Three Lions boss Thomas Tuchel essentially confirming that the midfielder has been dropped.
The 22-year-old has featured in just one game for Real Madrid since returning from shoulder surgery during the summer. But it was anticipated that the Real Madrid sensation would return to the fold for the upcoming encounters against Wales and Latvia this month.
Bellingham isn't the only surprise decision, with former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson keeping his place in the squad at the Madrid superstar's expense. There's no place for the likes of Jack Grealish, Phil Foden, and Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones, either.
Bellingham's exclusion comes merely two days after he was crowned England supporters' Player of the Year, making this a truly startling development.
Significantly, Tuchel indicated that the previous squad - and the team's commanding 5-0 triumph in Serbia - established the "standards," delivering an unmistakable signal to Jones and the other absentees.
"It was only three weeks now since the last camp and the last win, last performance," he said.
"The result was an excellent result and even more important, it was well deserved from our performance, so we decided very quickly that we want to reward everyone and bring the same group back into camp.
"Teamwork and team spirit and team effort was on the highest level throughout the week. I was so glad that the team proved it in the match.
"We had a big win against a strong opponent in a difficult away match, so the question was: why not bring the same group in because they set the standards?"
The only two alterations for the October fixtures see the return of Bukayo Saka from injury, replacing club colleague Noni Madueke, and former Liverpool defender Jarell Quansah stepping in for Tino Livramento, with the Newcastle defender sidelined.
Tuchel hinted that Jones could be back in contention if he continues to get minutes under his belt at Liverpool.
That could be quite a challenge, as Florian Wirtz arrived in the summer to add to the competition for places at the heart of Arne Slot's midfield.
"Phil Foden is in a very good moment," continued Tuchel. "Adam Wharton deserves to be with us. Curtis Jones and Trevoh Chalobah are getting minutes with their clubs.
"There are players who deserve to be here. Cole Palmer is injured who is a special player. It will always be like this."
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