England manager Thomas Tuchel has told Myles Lewis-Skelly he needs more game time if he is to make the World Cup squad, as Premier League clubs monitor his situation at Arsenal.
Lewis-Skelly was omitted from the group to face Serbia and Albania, with Tuchel saying that while he is a great character and a valuable squad member, “it is not enough to just be a good tourist”. The 19-year-old has played only 87 minutes of Premier League football this season, seemingly losing his place as Arsenal’s first-choice left-back to Riccardo Calafiori.
A number of Premier League clubs are monitoring Lewis-Skelly, who has made seven substitute appearances in the competition this term. Arsenal are not planning to sell in the January window as they chase four major trophies, and Lewis-Skelly recently signed a new five-year contract. There are no pressing financial constraints for Arsenal, but if they were to sell, Lewis-Skelly would represent 100 per cent profit under Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), having come through the club’s academy.
Lewis-Skelly was one of last season’s breakthrough stars, starting regularly for Arsenal in the second half of the campaign and scoring on his England debut against Albania in March. He has since won five more caps, starting five of the national side’s last eight games, but Tuchel selected Nico O’Reilly after his impressive displays at left-back for Manchester City.
“Myles was a very good team-mate and played for us in the last camp in the World Cup qualifier in Riga, so was Ruben Loftus-Cheek, so was Morgan Gibbs-White,” Tuchel said after the squad announcement. “But I said last time there is a component to it and that is about competition and performance and the door is always open for guys who perform on a high level regularly. Myles, Ruben and Morgan got out-performed by O’Reilly, Alex Scott and Jude Bellingham in their positions. Myles simply needs more starts, more minutes. Now came a time when O’Reilly had so many starts in that position, so he is slightly ahead for this camp.”
Image caption: Myles Lewis-Skelly has only started Arsenal’s Champions League and Carabao Cup matches this season.