Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton has been included in the England Under-21 squad for their European Championship campaign in June.
Wharton’s inclusion in Lee Carsley’s 29-player squad follows the news of Thomas Tuchel leaving him out of the senior side for their World Cup qualifier against Andorra on June 7 before a friendly against Senegal three days later. Carsley will finalise his selection, which will comprise 23 players, on June 6.
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Wharton, alongside Palace captain Marc Guehi, was taken to hospital as a precaution after they both suffered head injuries during the 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup final. Both players will miss Palace’s final match of the season.
Tuchel was in attendance as Wharton played a key role in helping Palace secure their maiden FA Cup trophy, before the 21-year-old was substituted on 87 minutes. The England head coach said the midfielder’s exclusion from the senior team was to allow him to be a leading figure for Lee Carsley’s side in their Euros campaign.
“We made Adam Wharton train with us in the last camp, when he was with under-21s but he trained with us and was very, very good,” Tuchel said at a news conference on Friday. “There’s also a little injury problem, concussion protocol going on from the final, in the FA Cup and together with Tino Livramento, Jarell Quansah, Elliot Anderson and Liam Delap, all names that could play a role for us.
“But a major tournament comes up for Under-21s and the intention is that they play a big part in this tournament. I think it’s important, I like it a lot that they have the chance to be leaders in this group to be players that hopefully relies on and we will monitor this very closely. For these players, the intention is they take the responsibilities for the Under-21s.”
Livramento, Quansah, Anderson and Delap were all included in Carsley’s squad, which was announced on Friday. It also includes Jobe Bellingham, whose Sunderland side will contest for promotion to the Premier League against Sheffield United in the Championship play-off final on Saturday, while Tottenham Hotspur’s Archie Gray, Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott, and Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri were also included.
England’s European campaign in Slovakia kicks off against Czech Republic on June 12, before facing the hosts on June 15 and Germany on June 18. Carsley’s side won the last edition of the tournament in 2023, as Curtis Jones’ goal on the stroke of half-time helped England to 1-0 victory over Spain in the final.
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England Under-21 squad
Goalkeepers: James Beadle (Sheffield Wednesday, on loan from Brighton), Owen Goodman (AFC Wimbledon, on loan from Crystal Palace), Teddy Sharman-Lowe (Doncaster Rovers, on loan from Chelsea), Tommy Simkin (Walsall, on loan from Stoke)
Defenders: Dennis Cirkin (Sunderland), Charlie Cresswell (Toulouse), Ronnie Edwards (QPR, on loan from Southampton), CJ Egan-Riley (Burnley), Teden Mengi (Luton Town), Brooke Norton-Cuffy (Genoa), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Jarell Quansah (Liverpool)
Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Jobe Bellingham (Sunderland), Archie Gray (Tottenham Hotspur), Hayden Hackney (Middlesbrough), Jack Hinshelwood (Brighton and Hove Albion), Tyler Morton (Liverpool), Alex Scott (AFC Bournemouth), Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace)
Forwards: Liam Delap (Ipswich Town), Harvey Elliott (Liverpool), Tom Fellows (West Bromwich Albion), Omari Hutchinson (Ipswich Town), Sam Iling-Junior (Middlesbrough, on loan from Aston Villa), Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal), Dane Scarlett (Tottenham Hotspur), Jay Stansfield (Birmingham City), Jonathan Rowe (Marseille, on loan from Norwich)
(Photo: George Wood/Getty Images)
