Cole Palmer will not be part of England's September 2026 gathering. According to Thomas Tuchel, the Chelsea forward was playing with discomfort and pain, and his club informed the national team of his withdrawal. The Athletic, for its part, mentions as an unconfirmed rumour a minor muscle injury as the reason for this withdrawal.
Palmer had started Chelsea's first five Premier League matches this season before this setback. He is currently undergoing a reconditioning programme abroad, supervised by a Chelsea fitness coach.
The Cole Palmer situation
The issue goes beyond this single withdrawal. Palmer had already been left out by Tuchel from the squad for the 2026 World Cup, and he has only played three matches with England since the manager's arrival in January 2025. He has 14 caps and 2 goals in total with the Three Lions.
Tuchel explained that Palmer was playing with discomfort and pain, stating that he was not blaming the player but noting a fact: the forward, in his view, misses far too many gatherings due to injuries. For the German coach, presence at training camps directly determines the trust he can place in a player: 'There is an extra level to impress that you can only reach on the pitch, with me.'
Palmer is not the only absentee from this gathering. Declan Rice, Tino Livramento, Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo have also withdrawn from the squad due to injury.
England face world champions Spain on Saturday at Wembley. This is the Three Lions' first match since the end of the 2026 World Cup, which ended with a 6-4 victory in the third-place playoff against France following a 2-1 defeat in the semi-final against Argentina, in which the team led 1-0 before conceding two goals late in the match.
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