Harry Maguire shares Trent Alexander-Arnold England snub theory — 'All about him'

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Harry Maguire has explained the reasoning behind Trent Alexander-Arnold's England squad omission after the former Liverpool right-back was left out of the World Cup squad — despite a last-minute injuryHarry Maguire says Trent Alexander-Arnold's latest snub was to avoid disruption surrounding England's preparations(Image: The Rest is Football)Harry Maguire believes Trent Alexander-Arnold's latest England omission was designed to prevent unwanted distractions.The German coach chose to bring in Chelsea center-half Trevoh Chalobah following Tino Livramento's withdrawal from the squad due to a calf problem. It marks another exclusion for the former Liverpool full-back, who remains out in the cold.The 27-year-old has earned 34 caps for England, but his sole appearance under Tuchel came in a 1-0 victory against Andorra in June 2025.

Fitness issues have limited Alexander-Arnold's availability for England, though he overcame them to feature regularly for Real Madrid in the latter stages of the season, hoping to secure his place in the squad heading to North America.Yet Tuchel has come under fire for overlooking the Champions League and Premier League winner, with many viewing him as one of England's most inventive talents.Chalobah, primarily a center-back, comes in for the Newcastle defender. Maguire, who was also excluded from the England squad, suggested the Chelsea player's selection was intended to avoid generating needless controversy ahead of their opening group fixture.Maguire acknowledged that high-profile England selections can disrupt preparations, though the Manchester United defender stopped short of suggesting any tension between Alexander-Arnold and Tuchel, nor does the 28-year-old carry that kind of influence within the squad.Alexander-Arnold will miss this year's World Cup(Image: Getty Images)Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast, he said: "When someone drops out like that, I do believe (with) the squad, you want to call up somebody with a minimum of fuss, no real media attention or disruption to the camp."So I do believe when someone did get injured, I don't think Trent would've ever been called up because the questions and everything will be about him, if it's a big game, it's about Croatia."If he called me up, it (the questions) would be about me, Luke Shaw, the same, we've been to tournaments and play for big clubs, that's what you want when you bring someone up on standby.

I hope he has an impact on the squad."With the tournament barely a week in, England is finally set to launch its campaign against Croatia, a rematch of the 2018 World Cup semifinal. Following the Three Lions' back-to-back final defeats at the European Championships, attention turns to whether Tuchel can steer England to an achievement that has eluded them for six decades.The 52-year-old has, however, faced considerable scrutiny over his squad choices, with several high-profile players notably absent, including Alexander-Arnold and Maguire.He explained: "We called Trevoh Chalobah because then we free up Jarell Quansah as full-back on both sides and Djed Spence can play both sides as full-back, so Trevoh comes as a center-back alternative and gives us full coverage in the back four."Tuchel has previously maintained that the decision to omit the former Liverpool defender was purely on sporting grounds, though suggestions of a personal grudge continue to circulate.