With most of the berths at the 2026 World Cup having now been claimed, hundreds of players across the globe will be targeting a place in their country’s squad for the tournament.Many will already know that they’ll be on the plane to North America next summer, barring a drastic change in circumstances, while others will be striving to win the faith of their national team coach between now and the end of the season.Two former Liverpool teammates fall into the latter category, with Jarell Quansah included in the England squad for their matches this month but Trent Alexander-Arnold omitted.Quansah ‘ahead’ of Alexander-Arnold for World Cup squad placeThe 22-year-old made his Three Lions debut in their 2-0 win over Albania on Sunday, being deployed at right-back rather than his usual central defensive role, and Thomas Tuchel hinted that the Bayer Leverkusen man is actually ahead of his Real Madrid counterpart in the pecking order for his country.Speaking about his eventual squad selection for the World Cup, the England boss said (via BBC Sport): “Of course I have a lot of trust in Jarell. I see his talent, but I see the package. He is tall, he is fast, he is strong in build-up. He is strong in the air. “He plays every minute for Leverkusen since the Under-21 Euros, so he is at the moment a tiny bit ahead [of Alexander-Arnold].”(Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)Will Quansah be in England’s final World Cup squad?With Quansah only winning his first cap a couple of days ago, it’d be quite the show of faith from Tuchel if he’s included in England’s squad for the World Cup, especially if it’s at the expense of the former Liverpool vice-captain.If Alexander-Arnold were to miss out and his ex-Anfield teammate is included as a right-back option despite mostly playing as a centre-back, that could be a significant dent on the 27-year-old’s pride, which already took a hit over the manner in which he left his hometown club nearly six months ago.In fact, the Real Madrid defender has played a grand total of 26 minutes for his country over the past year, with injuries frequently coming at the wrong time for him from an England point of view, but his loss had been Quansah’s opportunity and the Warrington native has seized it.There’s only one more international window (in late March) until Tuchel names his final squad for the World Cup, so the Leverkusen man won’t have many more opportunities to impress the Three Lions boss directly and will duly be reliant on playing consistently well for his club.That he’s now in with a genuine chance of making it to the tournament – and possibly ahead of Alexander-Arnold, too – is a reflection of how well he’s been playing in Germany, and why he might feel vindicated in what must surely have been a tough decision to leave Merseyside earlier this year.You can watch Slot’s full post-Man City press conference via Empire of the Kop on YouTube:The post ‘A tiny bit ahead…’ – Former Liverpool duo could be left scrambling for World Cup squad place appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.