England's 2026 World Cup Squad Picked with Data
A quick look at what the England World Cup squad would look like, if it was picked purely on data.
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Everybody knows that to pick a well-balanced squad for an international tournament, there’s all sorts of reasoning and thinking that goes in to choosing who gets the nod. But, for something a bit different, let’s see what the squad would be if we just used data from the Top 5 European Leagues this season.
The squad here has been picked using my Player Impact metric, with just three criteria that players must meet:
Over 500 league minutes in the relevant position
They must be fit for selection
They must be eligible for selection by England (obviously!)
Goalkeepers
This area of the squad is probably the least surprising part - and arguably the easiest to select. Jordan Pickford remains England’s No. 1, he’ll be supported by Dean Henderson and Newcastle’s Nick Pope.
The first two will definitely be selected in the squad on Friday, but it’s likely that James Trafford gets included ahead of the unfavoured Pope.
Goalkeepers who will probably make the final squad: 2/3
Defenders:
Here I’ve gone with 9 defenders, with Ben White not included due to his apparent injury. At left back, we’ve got Nico O’Reilly, and a resurgent Luke Shaw - who was last capped by England in 2024. On the right, Chelsea’s Reece James is first choice, with Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold playing second fiddle.
It’s the centre backs that throw up the most surprises. Marc Guehi is not one of them, but I’d be amazed if more than 1 of the other 4 actually get a call up. Harry Maguire is probably the one with the best chance of being selected.
The big surprises here are Everton’s Michael Keane, who’s data suggests he would be very valuable to bring on to help defend a lead in knockout games if Tuchel wanted to switch to a more defensive style. The chances of him adding to his 12 England caps though are very slim.
Then, we’ve got two potential debutants. U21 European Championship winner Charlie Cresswell, who has enjoyed a nice season in Ligue 1 with Toulouse, playing almost exclusively in a back 3. The other surprise is Bournemouth’s James Hill - it’s been a breakthrough season for the 24 year old - who would also bring the added benefit of having a long throw for set piece situations.
Defenders who will probably make the final squad: 4/9
Midfielders:
A couple of certainties for the squad here, in Premier League winner Declan Rice, and the player who will likely be moving on from Nottingham Forest this summer in Elliot Anderson.
They’ll be joined on the plane by Bournemouth’s Alex Scott, and a resurgent Kobbie Mainoo who has really impressed under Michael Carrick at Manchester United. Everton’s James Garner is the last deeper lying midfielder who makes this squad, his versatility would also help cover both full-back positions at a push too.
In the more advanced areas, Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham is an obvious choice, and he is joined by arguably England’s best player on current form in Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White.
A few weeks ago I thought it would be a long shot for Gibbs-White to make the squad, but his recent form for me makes him almost impossible not to select. There’s a few here that won’t be involved in the final 26-man squad though.
Midfielders who will probably make the final squad: 5/7
Attackers:
A couple of clear picks here, firstly in captain Harry Kane, and Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka. They’ll be joined by Marcus Rashford, who likely completes Tuchel’s first choice front 3 if everybody is fit.
4 spots left now - Aston Villa pair Morgan Rogers & Ollie Watkins both make the squad based on data. Watkins may be the one here who could miss out, with him not being in favour since Tuchel took charge.
Danny Welbeck is another striker who should be picked based on data - I find his selection to be very unlikely though, which is a shame for him as I think he’d be a perfect type of player to have on the bench considering his experience and talent.
The last spot was the one that was the closest battle amongst a few wide players - the winner on this occasion is Newcastle’s Harvey Barnes. In this idea of the squad, he’d provide good back up to Marcus Rashford on the left, and a slightly different playing profile too.
Attackers who will probably make the final squad: 4/7
What we end up with then, is a fairly well-balanced squad with some pretty big surprises. It’s a young squad - especially in midfield, where we might well see someone like Jordan Henderson make it on the plane for his leadership and experience. I’d also be surprised to see Tuchel take 3 out and out strikers.
The players who came very close to making this particular squad include some familiar names who we will likely see in the squad on Friday, but some other surprises too!
Lewis Hall
Jayden Bogle
Dan Burn
Trevoh Chalobah
Curtis Jones
Cole Palmer
Ebere Eze
Jarrod Bowen
Noni Madueke
Dominic Calvert-Lewin
Total amount of players who will probably make the final squad: 15/26