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Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White has spoken out about being left out of Thomas Tuchel’s England World Cup squad, stating that he believes he had done “more than enough” to earn his place in the team. The 26-year-old’s exclusion came as a major surprise following his best-ever season in the Premier League.

Red-hot form fails to convince Tuchel

Even after registering an impressive 25 combined goals and assists during a sensational campaign, Gibbs-White was omitted from Tuchel’s final 2026 World Cup squad. The Forest playmaker responded on the pitch, curling in a superb free-kick during a 1-1 draw against Bournemouth — a goal that took his season tally to 18.

Following the match, Gibbs-White revealed that Tuchel personally informed him of the decision through a phone call on Thursday evening. The midfielder’s omission was among several contentious decisions, as the German manager faced criticism for excluding a number of established stars in favour of players who fit his tactical blueprint.

Gibbs-White speaks on ‘opinions’

Speaking after the Bournemouth clash, a resilient Gibbs-White said: “I know myself that I have done more than enough to be in the squad. I got on the wrong side of someone’s opinion. I have been on the wrong side of people’s opinions throughout my career, so I’m only going to bounce back. We had a good conversation. I respect him [Tuchel] for calling me and telling me the news. I agreed with what he had to say. I’m glad the season is behind us now, I’m going to concentrate on the summer.”

The 26-year-old’s omission did not sit well with the Nottingham Forest supporters at the City Ground, who voiced their frustration with chants aimed at the England manager. After scoring, Gibbs-White celebrated by pointing to his name on his shirt and gesturing toward the fans — a symbolic message that he felt his contributions had been undervalued.

Tuchel prioritises tactical balance over big names

Tuchel later defended his selection choices, explaining that his priority was maintaining tactical harmony within the squad. The England boss emphasised that his decisions were driven by “hunger and excitement” rather than reputation or statistics. This approach resulted in several notable absentees, including Phil Foden and Cole Palmer, who joined Gibbs-White in missing the tournament.

Explaining his reasoning, Tuchel said: “Does this mean that the other guys that you mentioned did anything wrong? No. For some of them, it's just a positional thing that we also tried to have a balanced squad and not to bring five number 10s and make them play out of position because whom would we do a favour with? The player or ourselves? I don't think so.”

Transfer speculation surrounds Forest stars

While Gibbs-White processes his disappointment, his teammate Elliot Anderson has become the subject of intense transfer interest. Anderson, who has impressed Tuchel and is expected to start England’s World Cup opener against Croatia, has reportedly attracted attention from Manchester City and Manchester United despite Nottingham Forest valuing him at around £100 million.

Forest manager Vítor Pereira addressed the rumours following the club’s season finale, stating: “If you ask me if he deserves the best clubs in the world, he deserves. He has a lot of quality, he is a talent, but he is our player and I am very happy with him. The market is the market, I cannot predict the market. I know we want to keep the same players, to bring two or three players to help us balance the squad. In the end, we’ll see.”