Brentford’s Ivan Toney has received a maiden international call-up for England’s UEFA Nations League fixtures against Italy and Germany.
Toney’s first call-up for England comes after he produced five goals and two assists in six Premier League appearances this season for Brentford, whilst he has been amongst the country’s in-form home-grown top-flight players in 2022 with 13 goals during this calendar year alone.
Speaking about Toney’s first international call-up, Brentford Head Coach, Thomas Frank described the news as “fantastic” for player and club as he praised Toney for being “one of our leaders” on and off the pitch as he hopes that England fans can witness his talent on the international stage.
Frank also acknowledged the work put in by many of Toney’s former teams including Newcastle and Peterborough, as he added: “Tributes should also be paid to his family and everyone who has worked with him at previous clubs to help him develop.
Toney is the first Brentford player to receive a senior call-up since 1939 when Les Smith was part of the Three Lions’ squad.
England manager, Gareth Southgate has meanwhile been forced to make a change in goal as Everton’s Jordan Pickford is ruled out with a thigh injury suffered in this month’s Merseyside derby against Liverpool.
Nottingham Forest loanee, Dean Henderson has therefore been recalled for the first time since he withdrew from Euro 2020 with a hip injury mid-tournament, alongside the retained Nick Pope and Aaron Ramsdale.
In defence, James Justin and Ben White have been dropped with Ben Chilwell and Eric Dier instead returning after prolonged absences, whilst
Luke Shaw has also been added to the defensive selection as Conor Gallagher is snubbed from Southgate’s midfield line-up, which sees no further changes with Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice amonst those to keep their places in midfield.
Aside from Toney’s addition to his forward selection, Southgate has made no further changes as Marcus Rashford misses out with a muscle injury, following heavy discussions with Manchester United in the last few days.
Explaining his squad decisions via an online statement as the UK remains in national mourning following Queen Elizabeth II’s death, Southgate said:
“This is a bigger than normal squad and part of the rationale is that we are very close to a World Cup and we feel, although our results were disappointing in the summer, we have picked on the basis of form and capability over a long period.”
On Toney’s inclusion, Southgate added: “With Ivan Toney, we have been tracking him for a long time. I had a good chat with Thomas Frank about him last season.
“His form and his qualities – not only his goalscoring but his technical ability, build-up play and aerial prowess – gives us a different threat to some of the other players we could pick.”
England will visit Italy on Friday 23 September at San Siro, Milan, Italy in a 8:45pm CET kick-off, where defeat would see relegation to League B confirmed but at least one point would take their fight for survival to their final group match.
Should Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions avoid relegation in Italy, they will have to beat their fierecest rivals, Germany at Wembley Stadium on Monday 26 September in a 7:45pm BST kick-off, if they’re to extend their stay in League A for a further season.
Both fixtures will be televised live in the UK on Channel 4 with coverage getting underway from 7pm on both evenings.
Here is England’s 28-man squad in full to face Italy and Germany:
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Nottingham Forest), Nick Pope (Newcastle United), Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal)
Defence: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Everton), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Reece James (Chelsea), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Fikayo Tomori (AC Milan), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle United), Kyle Walker (Manchester City)
Midfield: Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Kalvin Phillips (Manchester City), Declan Rice (West Ham), James Ward-Prowse (Southampton)
Forward: Tammy Abraham (AS Roma), Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Chelsea), Ivan Toney (Brentford)