England have lost five players from Thomas Tuchel’s original Nations League squad, with Cole Palmer, Declan Rice, Marcus Rashford, Kobbie Mainoo and Tino Livramento all withdrawing before the opening match against Spain at Wembley on 26 September. Everton’s James Garner and Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White have been called up as replacements.

Palmer’s withdrawal is a particular setback after he had been recalled following his omission from England’s World Cup squad. The Chelsea forward has a minor muscle injury after playing the full 90 minutes in Chelsea’s 3-0 defeat at Brentford. He had started the season with four goals and two assists in seven appearances for Chelsea, but will now remain with his club during the international window.

Rice, Rashford, Mainoo and Livramento have also been ruled out, although the FA’s announcement did not provide individual medical details for each withdrawal. Therefore, the claims that Rashford has a persistent hip issue, that he was substituted early against Fulham, and that Mainoo played 80 minutes in that match should be removed unless independently verified.

Gibbs-White returns to the England squad for the first time since October 2025 and has six senior caps. Garner, who has two England caps, also joins the group and provides an additional central-midfield option after the losses of Rice and Mainoo.

England’s revised schedule is:
– Spain at Wembley — Saturday, 26 September.
– Czech Republic away — Tuesday, 29 September.
– Croatia away — Saturday, 3 October.
– Czech Republic at Wembley — Tuesday, 6 October.