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Thomas Tuchel stated that he holds "no problem" with Phil Foden after the trio did not make the England squad for upcoming matches against Latvia and Wales.

Bellingham did not earn a recall even after returning from a shoulder issue, whereas Foden and Grealish also miss out despite displaying a return to form with their clubs.

Tuchel revealed that Bellingham desired to be included of the selection, after a conversation with him on the phone.

"Bellingham is a special player, and for special players there can often be special rules," Tuchel remarked regarding Bellingham, who has made just one start since coming back to full health.

"But we opted to stick with the straightforward choice of calling up the same group.

"Jude consistently merits to be here. There is the factor that he has not fully found his full rhythm yet at Real Madrid - he has not finished a full match.

"He expressed a desire to be selected. We conducted a phone call."

Tuchel was keen to emphasize his positive relationship with Bellingham following he said sorry to him earlier this year for describing his conduct during a match as "repulsive" in a live interview.

Tuchel explained that he used the words "without meaning to" and promised to be more cautious in future.

When asked if he had a problem with Bellingham, Tuchel said: "No. There is no issue either with Foden or Grealish.

"Phil is returning to influencing and shaping games for his club. Jack is almost to returning to the best version of himself.

"There is no personal issue."

Saka taking the place of the hurt Noni Madueke is the only change to the previous team, with Loftus-Cheek and Jarell Quansah keeping their spots after joining as last-minute call-ups last month due to fitness concerns.

The Three Lions face Wales in a non-competitive match at Wembley Stadium on Thursday before a World Cup qualifier in the Latvian capital on 14 October.

Should the team win in Latvia, they will require a maximum of two points from their final two matches - against Albania and Serbia in next month - to secure a spot in next summer's World Cup in North America.

Strong Performance Under Tuchel

The Three Lions delivered their best display by some distance under the manager's guidance when they defeated Serbia five-nil on the road in the Serbian capital last time out.

Tuchel says that performance made it an straightforward choice to stick with largely the same squad, though "there are no certainties" for every squad member regarding being picked.

"Our previous gathering was only a few weeks ago and the cohesion and morale was on the highest level. That is why we decided to invite the identical players to this camp," he said.

"Phil is in a excellent run of form. Adam Wharton merits to be with us. Jones and Chalobah are getting playing time with their clubs.

"There are players who warrant to be here. Cole Palmer is unfit and is a special player. It will always be the case.

"Is our team a stronger side with Jude? Yes. But I mentioned before, what do we do if he is unavailable before the World Cup? Do we simply give up?"

Tuchel's Press Conference Draws Attention

The England manager again delivered a headline-grabbing news conference.

He, a expert of handling his relationship with the press, began with an initial remarks to explain his thinking for his selections.

Bellingham is fit and available and expressed interest to join to the squad, but the coach has said he did not want to change the squad too much after a statement five-goal victory over Serbia - where the boss said unity was extremely strong.

However with Tuchel not including Bellingham, and his repeated comments about team spirit, it is difficult to avoid connect the aspects - even though he said multiple times how Bellingham is "special" and that there is "no issue" between him and one of the national team's star players.

The England manager has always made it clear that he wanted to make the England squad seem like a club side and, by retaining the identical selection after a big victory, he has achieved that. But the inquiries will come again in the next camp if the team perform strongly in these next two matches.