Alan Shearer has voiced his confusion over Cole Palmer's decision to withdraw from the England squad ahead of the Nations League. Reports indicate that the Chelsea midfielder is dealing with slight muscle problems, but he played the entirety of the match against Brentford on Friday, which ended 0-3.
Palmer is among five players dropped from Thomas Tuchel's squad, joining Declan Rice, Marcus Rashford, Cobbie Mainoo, and Tino Livramento. In their places, Morgan Gibbs-White and James Garner have been called up.
Shearer stated:
I believe every opportunity to play for England should be seized. You can't just turn up for World Cups or European Championships. We don’t know the full circumstances and can only speculate, but five withdrawals is a lot.
I can understand Rice's situation due to the number of matches he has played, but for the others, I’m not sure.
What puzzles me the most is Cole Palmer's withdrawal. Yes, it’s important to monitor your physical condition, but he hasn’t played a whole lot. This season, he won’t have a massive number of matches anyway, as Chelsea are not in European competition.
Not knowing all the reasons, Palmer's case surprises me the most, especially considering he missed out on the World Cup.
He also highlighted that these absences present opportunities for other players. In particular, Gibbs-White can take advantage of Palmer's absence and solidify his place in Tuchel's plans.
England will face Spain in the Nations League on Saturday.
