Thomas Tuchel had an awkward chat with Morgan Gibbs-White as the new England boss prepares for Friday night's World Cup qualifying clash against Albania.
The German is currently preparing for his first match in charge of the Three Lions, having been confirmed as Gareth Southgate's permanent replacement last year.
Gibbs-White has been outstanding for Nottingham Forest this term, with the 25-year-old managing 12 goal involvements from 25 league matches.
This form has helped propel the club to third in the table, with only Liverpool and Arsenal ahead of them.
Thomas Tuchel had an awkward chat with Morgan Gibbs-White as the new England boss prepares for Friday night's World Cup qualifying clash against Albania
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Gibbs-White was initially left out of Tuchel's England squad. However, following an injury to Cole Palmer, he's now been drafted in.
Speaking about his recall, he admitted he was quizzed by Tuchel on whether he was still aggrieved at initially being snubbed.
“It was about 4 or 5 o'clock on Sunday," he said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
"The manager, Thomas, sent me a message to say ‘are you free to talk?’ And I replied within seconds ‘yeah’.
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“He phoned me up and said ‘are you still upset with me, or do you want to come and join us and fancy training tomorrow?’
“I said ‘I'd obviously love to come and join and train with the boys’, so, yes, I found out Sunday late afternoon-ish and I was just smiling from ear to ear.”
While Gibbs-White was happy to accept Tuchel's invite to the squad, the Forest star did admit he was 'upset' at being left out.
"Obviously I was upset. Yes, a little bit disappointed," he continued.
Thomas Tuchel has replaced Cole Palmer with Morgan Gibbs-White ahead of England's clash with Albania on Friday
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"But at the same time, you also have to look at the quality of players that England have at the minute, so obviously I took that into consideration.
“But when he told me, I respected his decision. The standard of players is top level.
“I said to him ‘I feel like I've done enough to get the call up, considering the form level that I am in, but obviously you're the manager, you make the decisions, and I respect that totally’.”
A year ago, Forest were fighting for Premier League survival.
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However, 12 months on, they're now dreaming of Champions League football.
Gibbs-White, when asked about their sensational season, stated: "It's been a remarkable year, yes.
"Just to see where we've come from, from this time last year is incredible. I think the Forest fans deserve that the most.
“Obviously, getting back into the Premier League was one thing, and then scrambling away from relegation for the two years that we were in the Prem obviously wasn't nice.
Thomas Tuchel will be hoping to steer England to victory against Albania on Friday
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"It wasn't good, it wasn't enjoyable.
“But now, obviously, we've given the fans something to sing about, to cheer about."
