Palmer scored in Chelsea’s win over Manchester United at the weekend and has been one of the Premier League’s standout performers this autumn. On Friday, Tuchel left him out anyway.
England’s medical staff ran fitness checks with the Chelsea club doctors in the days before the announcement, a routine step for players under a cloud but one that did not guarantee selection. The 24-year-old attacker did not make the cut.
The omission is not new ground. Palmer pulled out of September’s squad complaining of physical discomfort, has played just three times under Tuchel since the German took over, and was not in the England squad that went to the 2026 World Cup. His last cap came in a defeat to Japan in March.
Tuchel’s standing line on Palmer
Tuchel has been openly uncomfortable with Palmer’s record of pulling out of camps. In September, he told reporters that the Chelsea man “misses way too many camps with injuries and I only want to rely on what I personally witness and what I see within my team, and for that you have to be in camp.”
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The November decision follows the same logic. Palmer looks sharp for Chelsea, with three goals and three assists in his first nine Premier League starts of the season according to Rotowire, but a manager who wants bodies in camp has again drawn the line.
Mainoo and Foden also miss out
Sportingpedia reports that Phil Foden, Kobbie Mainoo, Harry Maguire and Jordan Henderson are also out of this squad.
The headline new face is Jobe Bellingham, called up for the first time by Tuchel after a strong start at Borussia Dortmund. He joins his older brother Jude in the senior group. Fulham’s Josh King, who trained with England ahead of the 2026 World Cup, has also been included for the first time.
The two matches Palmer will miss
The squad has two Nations League matches to navigate. England host Croatia at Wembley on Thursday, 12 November, with kick-off at 7:45pm local time. Three days later they travel to the Metropolitano in Madrid to face Spain on Sunday, 15 November.
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Palmer, in the meantime, stays at Chelsea for the international window and the extra recovery time that comes with it. Tuchel’s next squad is due before the start of the 2026-27 Nations League knockout stage.
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