Lewis Hall: My job is to make sure I stay here. (He's turning the World Cup qualification deficit into motivation.)

Newcastle defender Lewis Hall said in an interview that he was really disappointed not to be selected for the England squad for the 2026 World Cup, so now that he has been called up, he has to prove that he deserves to stay with the team.

England, the "Three Lions," will travel to Eden Stadium to face the Czech Republic in the second round of the 2026/27 UEFA Nations League C group stage. In the first round of group matches, England rallied from behind to take the lead thanks to goals from Gordon and Kane, but conceded another goal near the end of the game, ultimately losing 2-3 to Spain.

Reflecting on his experience of being left out of England's World Cup squad, 22-year-old Lewis Hall said, "I think it's important to use that emotion, but of course, you can't dwell on it too much or get too negative about it, because that could have a negative impact."

"So I will turn this disappointment and frustration into motivation. I think any player who is not selected for the World Cup squad will feel disappointed, and everyone will do the same thing to try to get back into the national team squad. Once you are in the national team, you will eventually have this jersey, and what the player has to do is to do his best to keep it. And when you are not selected, you must do your best to win this jersey back from others."

Lewis Hall emphasized, "I think this is what people call fair competition, and it's very important for moving the team and the country forward. I think this kind of competition allows players to perform at their best. Now that I'm in the national team squad, my job is to make sure I stay here."

"That's football. If you want to achieve your goals, you'll definitely get opportunities to prove yourself. As long as you can seize those opportunities, you can create everything you dream of. I'm really grateful to be selected for the national team now. When I get the chance, I hope I can hold on to it."

When asked about his conversation with coach Tuchel before the World Cup, Lewis Hall said, "It was very important for me to maintain private communication with him, including what he said and what we discussed. But he knew I would definitely be disappointed, and not just me. He must have spoken to many disappointed players on the phone during the summer."

"This was certainly not a pleasant conversation for me, but I know it was equally difficult for him because he knows that participating in the World Cup is every player's dream. So, I won't talk about the specifics of what we discussed."

Image source: Internet