Marcus Rashford has wished Gareth Southgate and the England players well for Euro 2024 after being axed from the provisional squad.
Three Lions boss Southgate named his 33-man camp for two friendlies against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland on Tuesday afternoon. After the second and final warm-up game - which is on Friday, June 7 - Southgate will trim that contingent to 26 ahead of the tournament in Germany.
Even though Southgate has decided to utilise a larger-than-normal squad for their training camp, Rashford has still not been included. The 26-year-old has endured a difficult season at Manchester United, scoring just eight goals in 42 appearances. However, he has featured in each of the last four major tournaments and impressed for England at the World Cup in Qatar, notably scoring in the 3-0 win over Wales.
Explaining his decision to not chose Rashford, Southgate said in a press conference: "These are difficult calls. With Marcus I just feel other players in that area have had better seasons. It's as simple as that."
Now, Rashford has taken to Instagram to react after not being included in the training squad for Euro 2024. In an Instagram story which included a graphic of the 33 players selected, Rashford said: "Wishing Gareth and the boys all the best for the up and coming tournament."
Instead of Rashford, the forwards Southgate has chosen to take include Jude Bellingham, Jarrod Bowen, Eberechi Eze, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Anthony Gordon, Harry Kane, James Maddison, Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka, Ivan Toney and Ollie Watkins. There is no place for Raheem Sterling or Dominic Solanke.
Southgate has taken the opportunity to select youth in his training squad, with Crystal Palace duo Eze and Adam Wharton, as well as Liverpool's Jarrel Quansah, Manchester United's Kobbie Mainoo and Everton's Jarrad Branthwaite named ahead of friendlies against Bosnia and Iceland.
Along with Rashford, the other most high-profile absentee was Jordan Henderson. The Ajax midfielder has endured a difficult season and misses his first major tournament since being picked for Euro 2012.
When asked about why Henderson was not included in the squad, Southgate said: "He given himself every chance. The determining factor was the injury he picked up in the last camp. He missed five weeks and wasn't able to get back up to the level of intensity. It was a difficult decision."
Elaborating on the omission of Henderson, he continued: "He will be a miss. He's an exceptional individual and fantastic human being. He's been in that leadership role for a long time. We've got young players with a lot of caps. There's no reason why young players can't lead."
Join our new WhatsApp communityand receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.