Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri will be among four players to train with England’s World Cup squad in the U.S. in the build up to the tournament.
Thomas Tuchel confirmed on Friday that Liverpool’s 17-year-old forward Rio Ngumoha, Fulham midfielder Josh King and Bournemouth’s Alex Scott would join England’s preparation camp in Florida as training players.
Nwaneri, who has spent the second half of the season on loan at French club Marseille, will also bolster the squad for the warm-up friendlies against New Zealand and Costa Rica in Florida on June 6 and June 10, respectively.
Jason Steele, the Brighton goalkeeper, will remain with the squad for the duration of the tournament as a training player.
Nwaneri, an England Under-21 international, joined Marseille in January from Arsenal, having made just four starts for the north London club in the first half of the campaign – all in cup competitions. The attacking midfielder, 19, made 11 appearances for Marseille, scoring twice.
After their pair of friendlies in Florida, England head to Kansas City, where they will be based for the remainder of the tournament. They begin their World Cup campaign against Croatia on June 17, before further games against Ghana and Panama in Group L.
Speaking after naming his final 26-man squad on Friday, Tuchel said of the training players: “We will take some young players out who will train with us and keep the squad at the size we need so we have all the possibilities for the two friendly matches to take care about the minutes and load of the players.
“Alex Scott is confirmed, Rio Ngumoha is confirmed, and Josh King, and there will be one more player which we cannot name because it has not been confirmed yet.
“I am happy that these guys are with us, especially Alex who was on the list of 55 and had a disappointing phone call as well that he didn’t make the first cut.
“But the reaction of him was outstanding, the commitment and wish to be in pre-camp and be a step closer to the team – it was not even a question for him. It showed me his character and his spirit and I am delighted he is with us because it was close call. He gets a chance to take a step closer and get a cap.”