Jude Bellingham may not have featured in England’s most recent squad, but Ben Foster insists he must start for Thomas Tuchel’s side at the World Cup next summer.
Bellingham was a notable omission from the Three Lions squad over the October international break after he returned to action at Real Madrid following shoulder surgery.
Tuchel admitted he had ‘no problem’ with Bellingham but suggested that the 22-year-old was still lacking match fitness. The midfielder has started just one of his five games since returning for Real.
Regardless, Tuchel’s decision to omit one of England’s best players drew widespread criticism, even if it is highly unlikely that Bellingham will be left out of the 26-man squad for next summer’s World Cup.
Former England midfielder Paul Scholes suggested that the Three Lions had ‘no chance’ of winning the World Cup if Bellingham was not included in the squad.
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And Foster was in agreement with his former teammate, suggesting Bellingham has to be in England’s starting XI for the first game in North America next summer.
‘When he is popping, he is unreal,’ Foster told talkSPORT. ‘I think he has got this aura about him.
‘Whether he might need to tailor or change – I’m not sure how to describe it – his attitude or his flipancy at certain things that happen in a game, he might throw his arms a bit and chunter here and there.
‘He might have to lose that from his game before Thomas Tuchel finally accepts him into the fold, but if he does and we have Jude Bellingham on form again, then he has to be in there (England’s starting XI).’
Tuchel has not been afraid to make bold selection calls since arriving in the post, and eyebrows were certainly raised when the German handed a recall to Jordan Henderson in March.
The former Liverpool captain was not part of Gareth Southgate’s squad for Euro 2024, but the 35-year-old has been a constant presence in Tuchel’s camp even if he has only started once, away at Andorra in June.
Henderson moved to Brentford over the summer and has made an impressive start under new boss Keith Andrews in the early part of the season.
But Foster believes that Tuchel is mainly leaning on Henderson’s leadership qualities and experience, and urged the England boss to stick to his guns and include the midfielder in his World Cup squad.
‘You need these guys, you do,’ he added. ‘Most of the players on this team are young men, and it’s a big experience going to a World Cup, a lot of pressure attached to it and a lot of people watching what you are doing.
‘You need a Jordan Henderson character around the place to keep everybody in check.
‘Everybody looks to Jordan Henderson, he’s the captain without being the captain, he’s almost like a mini manager at times.
‘He’s going to be the guy that when England play on a Friday night, for example, and they have a training group on Saturday, he’s going to be the guy leading that group and making sure everybody is pulling in the right direction and there’s nobody being negative Nellies.
‘That’s what you need, so he’s a must-go for me.’
England’s win over Latvia secured their World Cup qualification, but Tuchel’s side will still be back next month to play their final two qualifiers against Serbia and Albania.
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