Ben White: Gareth Southgate reveals Arsenal defender does not want England selection

Gareth Southgate has revealed that Ben White does not want to be picked for England at this time.

The Arsenal defender has not been named in a Three Lions squad since he left the World Cup in Qatar in November 2022 for personal reasons.

White has been in brilliant form for Arsenal this season but was again left out by England boss Southgate when he named his squad for the upcoming friendlies against Brazil and Belgium on Thursday.

Southgate revealed that he received a call from Arsenal sporting director Edu last week saying that White did not want to be selected.

“Clearly on form I cannot say he does not deserve to be in,” said Southgate.

“We had a call from Edu last week saying that Ben did not want to be considered for England squads at this time.

“For me, that is a great shame. He is a player I really like. He is a player I took to the Euros when he was at Brighton, a player we took to the World Cup.

“I spoke to him post-Qatar because I was keen to pick him and there was clearly reticence on his side. I do not know fully why that is but I have to respect that.

“I want to leave the door open for him because he is a good player and I think he is a player who can make a difference for England.

“But he is not available to us. The only other thing to say is there is no issue between us at all.

“I should also say there is no issue with [assistant coach] Steve Holland, because that has been mentioned in articles and I do not like that.

“He would be in this squad. But he is not available to us. So I have focus on those who can help us.”