Jamie Carragher has named two England players who haven’t ‘done enough’ to earn a starting spot under Thomas Tuchel.
The Three Lions have two World Cup qualifying matches this week as they host Serbia tonight before an away game against Albania on Sunday.
Tuchel’s latest squad includes three goalkeepers – Everton’s Jordan Pickford, Crystal Palace’s Dean Henderson and Newcastle’s Nick Pope.
Pickford has long been England’s No.1 ‘keeper, earning 80 caps and helping the Three Lions reach the World Cup semi-finals in 2018 as well as back-to-back finals at Euro 2020 and Euro 2024.
But Pickford has never played in the Champions League like Pope, while Henderson helped Palace win the FA Cup and Community Shield in 2025.
Get personalised football updates every day
Sign up to our daily football newsletter and choose your team to get the latest news, rumours and more about your favourite team.
Pickford, though, has rarely put a foot wrong for his country and Carragher is adamant that the 31-year-old will go on to record over 100 England caps.
‘Pickford is England’s No.1 – it’s not even close,’ Carragher, who is spearheading the next phase of Sky Bet and the British Heart Foundation’s Every Minute Matters campaign, told Metro.
‘The other two (Henderson and Pope) haven’t really done enough or are close enough to Pickford. They’ve just got no experience of playing for England because Pickford has been so consistent. I don’t think it’s even a debate.
‘Pickford will get over 100 caps which is a fantastic achievement for any player, especially a goalkeeper.
‘I think he’s fine for at least another 18 months in England’s goal.’
Carragher: Scott call-up gives ‘hope’ to players
Meanwhile, AFC Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott could be set to make his first England appearance after being named in the November squad.
‘I rate him,’ Carragher said. ‘But more importantly, it sounds like Tuchel rates him.
‘When you see a call-up like that, I think it gives hope to a lot of players up and down the country who feel they’re not a name being championed by the press or pushing to make an England squad.
‘There will be players who now think, ‘Okay, there are people watching my games and me’.
‘Tuchel and his staff are going up and down this country watching games. He left some really big names out of this squad and the last couple of squads.
‘It’s not a given to be selected if you’re a big name. It’s who deserves to be in the squad.
‘Anybody has got an opportunity if they’re playing well and anyone can go out of the squad even if they think they’re a mainstay. I think that bodes well for every footballer up and down this country.’
‘Howe should be the next England manager’
Tuchel’s contract as England head coach is currently set to expire after the 2026 World Cup and if the German leaves, Carragher would love to see Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe take over.
Quizzed about Howe, or Coventry City’s Frank Lampard becoming the next England manager, Carragher added: ‘Eddie Howe is the No.1 for me.
‘I wouldn’t be thinking about anyone else. It would be Howe. I do look at his situation at Newcastle. Can he take them any further?
‘He’s got them into the Champions League twice, he’s won a trophy, it hasn’t really kicked on from there and it’s tough.
‘You know, the ownership can’t invest the amount of money in the team that they’d like. They lost Alexander Isak as well.
‘I think Howe has done a brilliant job at Newcastle – but I don’t think he can do any better there. He’d be the one I’d be pulling all the stops out to get for England.’