Morgan Gibbs-White reveals what he told Thomas Tuchel after finally being called up to England

Morgan Gibbs-White reveals what he told Thomas Tuchel after finally being called up to England, coming in to replace injured Cole Palmer.

The 25 year old shared that he expressed his initial disappointment to Thomas Tuchel after being left out of the new England manager’s first squad.

The Nottingham Forest star admitted he was “upset” and “a little bit disappointed” by the snub, especially given his strong form in the Premier League, where he has contributed five goals and seven assists this season.

However, when Chelsea’s Cole Palmer withdrew due to injury, Tuchel contacted Gibbs-White on Sunday to offer him a late call-up for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Albania and Latvia.

During their conversation, Gibbs-White told Tuchel he believed he had “done enough to get the call-up” based on his performances, but he also acknowledged the high quality of players in the England squad.

Despite the earlier omission, Gibbs-White spoke positively about Tuchel, calling him “incredible” and appreciating the manager’s proactive approach in reaching out to players since taking the job. Tuchel lightened the mood by asking, “Are you still upset with me?” before inviting him to join the team, an opportunity Gibbs-White eagerly accepted.

“Are you still upset with me?” 😅

📞 Morgan Gibbs-White reveals Thomas Tuchel’s surprise Sunday call that led to his late England selection#BBCFootball #England #ThreeLions pic.twitter.com/UM13dpM9oc

— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) March 18, 2025

After linking up with the Three Lions squad on Monday at St. George’s Park, Gibbs-White recalled his interaction with Tuchel, saying BBC Radio 5 Live: “Obviously I was upset. Yeah, a little bit disappointed. But when he told me, I respected his decision. The standard of players is top-level.

“I said to him back like ‘I feel like I’ve done enough to get the call-up, considering the form level that we were in, but obviously you’re the manager, you make the decisions, and I respect that totally’. So, obviously, it was disappointing but then Sunday I got the call, so I was straight here.

“”I was upset, a little bit disappointed, but at the same time you always have to look at the quality of players England have.

“I took that into consideration, but when he told me, I respected his decision.

“I said to him ‘I think I have done enough to get the call-up considering the club form that we are in, but you are the manager, you make the decisions, and I will respect that’.”

He added: “It was about 4 or 5 o’clock. He sent me a message to say ‘Are you free to talk?’ And I think I replied within like 30 seconds. He phoned me up and said ‘Are you still upset with me, or do you want to come and join us and fancy training tomorrow?’ Obviously, there’s no question there. I said I’d obviously love to come and join and train with the boys, so, yeah, found out Sunday late afternoon and I was just smiling from ear to ear.”

Despite the initial disappointment over the rejection, Gibbs-White spoke highly of Tuchel: “To be fair, he’s been incredible. I think he’s done it with most of the players. As soon as he got the job, he’s been in contact with quite a majority of the players. He’s a really easy-going sort of guy, nice to speak to and he just says things like he’s coming to watch everyone play games and stuff.

“I feel like it was, for him, important to try and get that bond straight away with players because he’s used to club football, so he’s used to spending time every day with players. I felt like it was top from him, really good that he sort of started that relationship before even meeting us, which is really good. So, yeah, just delighted to be here now.”

“I would have snapped your hand off. I’d have thought you were talking rubbish,” Gibbs-White said.

“Funny thing is, in pre-season we had that belief that we could do something this season. Did we think to this level? Probably not, but we felt that we could achieve something decent this season.

“With the pre-season we had under the manager [Nuno Espirito Santo], because he really implemented his ideas, and his man management and his belief into the players, he really got to know everyone individually and I think that is what has helped us massively.

“We work so hard, day in and day out, to achieve these sorts of goals and you know everyone is just in a good place at the minute.

“The morale is high and the vibe is very high.”

Morgan Gibbs-White added to England squad after Nottingham Forest fans aim dig at Thomas Tuchel

Fans reacted after Morgan Gibbs-White reveals what he told Thomas Tuchel after finally being called up to England…

@ReissNFFC: Didn’t agree with the squad but England wanted a winner & on the face of it, got one with Tuchel. His pride could have held him back calling up MGW after seeing pic of him but fair play, he’s done the right thing & had a joke about it. Hope MGW shows his worth to England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

@nffc999: Hopefully it’s one of those ‘everything happens for a reason kind of situations’, gets some game time, plays superb and he continues to select him.

@Redtilimdead1: It’s not so much the MGW that bothers me , he’s class and will get in anytime soon , it’s the other deadwood and there’s a lot of it that’s been selected ffs we going backwards

@Nesto25: Sliding doors. He’ll prove his worth now

@ggdotcom6787: Class from MGW, you just get nothing less in all areas with him. On and off the pitch. Best Forest player I’ve ever seen #nffc

@nffc1865__: better player than cole palmer btw

@FayeEsq: He deserves it