Morgan Gibbs-White speaks out after England call-up clip featuring his fiancee caused a stir

· Mirror

Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White was called up by England as a replacement for Cole Palmer after he was forced to pull out and a video of the midfielder then went viral

Morgan Gibbs-White has claimed his viral England call-up clip alongside his fiancee was just ‘banter’ after her Thomas Tuchel dig. The Nottingham Forest star was not initially included in the Three Lions’ squad for the first international break of the season.

But he was eventually called-up as a replacement for Cole Palmer, who pulled out late on. A video of Gibbs-White leaving a family holiday, mouthing the words to a High School Musical song, went viral in the aftermath.

And he has now spoken out and claimed it wasn’t too serious and she understood that he needed to consider his career.

> “It was just me and my missus having a bit of banter, we do it all the time,” the 26-year-old said. “We were just trying to make a bit of light out of a situation that was difficult for her and the kids, but she completely understood.

> “She made light of it. We always do silly, stupid stuff like that, and it's just us being funny together, and in a good relationship.”

He added: “I got to the hotel around eight o'clock Dubai time and then two hours later got a text message. I spent more time on the plane than I did in Dubai. But playing for my country comes first, 100 per cent.

> "There was no question in my mind. No debate whether to come. It's an honour to represent your country, whether it's for 10 minutes or sitting on the bench."

The video was not the only drama that Gibbs-White’s fiancee Britney De Villiers was involved in. When he was initially left out, she took to Instagram to post a picture emphasising the fact that Gibbs-White is the only player in the Premier League who has created five plus chances in every game that he has played so far this term.

Explaining Gibbs-White’s initial omission, England boss Tuchel said: “It makes no sense to nominate three, four, five number 10s. It just does not help anyone. We can see the form that Morgan [Gibbs-White] is in.

> "It's one thing to be nominated, but it's another thing to perform. This also counts, especially Cole needs to step up to justify the nomination."

Gibbs-White has so far earned eight caps for England since making his debut and has made brief cameos against both Spain and Czechia over the international break. He could make a further appearance at the weekend with the Three Lions set to take on Croatia in Rijeka.

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