Harry Maguire's Awkward FaceTime Snub from England Squad
Harry Maguire admits Thomas Tuchel’s decision to cut him from the latest England squad arrived in the most modern – and most uncomfortable – way possible.
Not with a knock on the door. Not with a quiet word in a corridor.
On FaceTime.
An awkward call with brutal news
Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, the Manchester United defender lifted the lid on the moment his phone lit up with a message from the England boss.
“He FaceTimed everyone. It was quite an awkward call,” Maguire revealed. “I received a text saying can I speak to you about 4pm. It is quite a unique way of doing it and it must be quite hard because he can see everyone's reactions.”
There was no attempt to hide his feelings. No polite small talk.
“I said straightaway I was really disappointed,” he said. “I thought I did enough to be in the squad and thought I could have helped and had a part to play on and off the pitch.”
Tuchel, Maguire explained, didn’t dress the decision up.
“He said he can't give me an excuse but he had gone with the four lads who got him through the autumn.”
For a player with 66 caps, who has been a mainstay at major tournaments, the bluntness of the message stung.
“It was tough to take,” Maguire admitted.
From March optimism to summer rejection
What made the snub harder was the timing. Maguire believed he had rebuilt his England case under the new regime.
“I did think I would be in the squad after being selected for the March camp under him for the first time,” he said. “I did really well in both games and then went back to Manchester United and finished the season really strongly.”
He had every reason to think he had done enough. Minutes on the pitch, solid performances, a strong finish to the club season – the usual ingredients for an international recall were there.
The call told a different story.
Tuchel stayed loyal to the defenders who had carried him through the autumn fixtures, leaving one of England’s most experienced centre-backs watching from home.
Still in the group chat, still in the fight
Maguire’s England journey, though, is not over in his mind. Not close.
Despite the setback, he has stayed in touch with the core of the dressing room – the leaders who define this era of the national team. Harry Kane. Declan Rice. Jordan Pickford. The spine of the side he once marshalled from the back.
He has made it clear he remains fully behind them, even if he is no longer on the team sheet.
And he is refusing to draw a line under his international career, even with Tuchel contracted through to Euro 2028.
“I don't think I would retire from England. I still feel I have something to offer,” he said. “There will be a time and a place where I don't deserve to get picked but I probably still wouldn't come out and retire. If I got one more cap it would be worth it.”
For now, Maguire is on the outside looking in. But he is not walking away. Not from the fight, not from the shirt, and certainly not from the idea that one more call – however awkward the method – might yet bring him back into the England fold.
