Reports suggest a heated confrontation between Arsenal’s Ben White and England’s assistant, Steve Holland, during White’s last period with the national team.
Manager Gareth Southgate announced that White has declared himself out of contention for national duty, with Edu, Arsenal’s sporting director, relaying this to John McDermott, England’s technical director.
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White has not yet disclosed his reasons for withdrawing from the national team, and Southgate is reportedly unaware of the rationale behind White’s decision to remove himself from consideration for England’s squad in the upcoming Euro 2024.
The Athletic has reported that, during the World Cup in Qatar, there was a tense altercation between White and Holland in the presence of other team members.
Holland was of the view that White was dismissive of the tactical guidance and training data provided. It was also noted that White expressed a disinterest in football beyond his playing days.
‘Sitting down and watching a 90-minute game after I’ve trained all day and had four or five meetings about football, the last thing I want to do is watch more football,’ White said in November 2022.
There is no suggestion that White’s exchange with Holland resulted in his decision to leave the England camp during the tournament.
During his press conference on Thursday, Southgate also stressed that Holland does not have any issue with White.
‘He’s clearly playing very well and has been for a long time,’ Southgate said of White.
‘But he’s not the first player who, at certain times, hasn’t wanted to be available for selection. I’ve always tried to protect those players because I always want the door to be left open, even though on lots of those occasions I’m the one who gets it in the neck for not picking them and people don’t know the reasons.
‘There’s no issue between us and there was never any issue with Steve Holland. That has been mentioned in articles and I don’t like that.
‘People can talk about me and I have to accept that things get said that are false, about me. For whatever reason in this role, you have to stomach that.
‘But I’m not prepared for that to happen to a key member of my coaching team. That is not the reason Ben is not available for selection.’
