âIncredibleâ Tuchel helped Gibbs-White over England upset
Gibbs-White assesses his form, England, and Nottingham Forestâs rejuvenation
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Morgan Gibbs-White says Thomas Tuchel has been âincredibleâ with Englandâs players â even though the midfielder was upset when the new head coach initially left him on the sidelines.
Nottingham Forestâs Gibbs-White was told by Tuchel that he would not be selected for Englandâs opening 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
But following an injury to Chelseaâs Cole Palmer on Sunday, Tuchel contacted Gibbs-White and he was called up for the games against Albania and Latvia after all.
âHe phoned me up and said âAre you still upset with me, or do you want to join us, and fancy training with us tomorrow?â,â Gibbs-White told BBC Radio 5 Live.
âThere was no question there. I was smiling from ear to ear. I am delighted.â
That is a stark contrast to how Gibbs-White felt when the 25-year-old initially missed out.
He has helped Forest to third place in the Premier League table and believed he had done enough to earn England recognition.
âI was upset, a little bit disappointed, but at the same time you always have to look at the quality of players England have,â Gibbs-White said.
âI took that into consideration, but when he told me, I respected his decision.
âI said to him âI think I have done enough to get the call-up considering the club form that we are in, but you are the manager, you make the decisions, and I will respect thatâ.â
Tuchel has shown heâs ânot just here for a jollyâ

Gibbs-White won his first two England caps last year under interim boss Lee Carsley
Tuchel reached out to several England players before they came together for the games at Wembley on 21 and 24 March.
They included Gibbs-White, who was hoping to earn a recall after winning his first two caps under interim boss Lee Carsley last September and November.
âTo be fair, [Tuchel] has been incredible,â Gibbs-White said. âI think he has done [that] with most of the players.
âI think as soon as he got the job he has been in contact with the majority of the players. He is a really easy-going sort of guy, nice to speak to.
âI felt it was top from him, really good starting that relationship with us before even meeting us.â
Gibbs-White was part of Tuchelâs first training session on Monday, in which the former Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Paris St-Germain boss spelled out want he wants from his players.
âHe is really intense and that is the first thing I took from it,â said Gibbs-White.
âI believe when you know someone knows what he wants, you believe in it as well.
âThat intensity to show that he is not just here for a jolly, he is here to win, that was really nice to see.â
âChampions League? Iâd have snapped your hand offâ
Elangaâs brilliance & why Gibbs-White deserves England spot
Tuesday marked exactly 12 months since Nottingham Forest were deducted four points for a breach of the Premier Leagueâs profit and sustainability rules (PSR).
That dropped them into the relegation zone, but they ultimately finished 17th, one place and six points above the bottom three.
Now they are just four points behind second-placed Arsenal and on course to qualify for next seasonâs Champions League.
âWhen you put it like that, itâs a remarkable year,â said Gibbs-White. âJust to see where we have come from, from this time last year, is incredible.
âI think the Forest fans deserve that the most. Getting back into the Premier League was one thing.
âScrambling in relegation for the two years we were in the Premier League obviously wasnât nice. It wasnât enjoyable, but now we have given the fans something to cheer about.â
Gibbs-White has been Forestâs captain for most of the season, claiming five league goals and seven assists, and feels he is in âthe best form I have ever been inâ.
âComing here [with England] with that confidence, that level of football at the minute, I feel as though I am in a really good place,â he said.
â[Iâm] really proud. Walking out at the City Ground every week, I do get goosebumps.â
To float the idea of Forest flying so high would have been hard to believe 12 months ago.
âI would have snapped your hand off. Iâd have thought you were talking rubbish,â Gibbs-White said.
âFunny thing is, in pre-season we had that belief that we could do something this season. Did we think to this level? Probably not, but we felt that we could achieve something decent this season.
âWith the pre-season we had under the manager [Nuno Espirito Santo], because he really implemented his ideas, and his man management and his belief into the players, he really got to know everyone individually and I think that is what has helped us massively.
âWe work so hard, day in and day out, to achieve these sorts of goals and you know everyone is just in a good place at the minute.
âThe morale is high and the vibe is very high.â