Thomas Tuchel’s inclusion of Jordan Henderson in his first England squad is the new manager’s mic drop moment – he will live or die by this decision, writes IAN LADYMAN

All England managers like to make an impact on their first meaningful day of work – and we have waited a while for Thomas Tuchel’s.

But there would have been no money on Jordan Henderson being handed a route out of the football wilderness for next week’s double header of World Cup qualifiers against Albania and Latvia at Wembley.

Tuchel has less than 18 months to assemble a team to win the World Cup in the summer of 2026. Henderson – recently marooned at Ajax after his disastrous move to Saudi Arabia – will be 36 by then. Is this really the way forward for England’s new head coach? It’s hard to say it is and the likes of Conor Gallagher – seen scoring in the last 16 of the Champions League for Atletico Madrid just this week – and Morgan Gibbs-White – knocking the lights out for Nottingham Forest – must feel desperately hard done by not to make Tuchel’s list.

There are other big calls on the sheet. Marcus Rashford is back after his revival at Aston Villa while Newcastle defender Dan Burn is in for the first time – called by Mail Sport’s Chief Football Reporter Craig Hope on Thursday night. Dominic Solanke has also been given a place ahead of OIlie Watkins and Ivan Toney.

But it’s in central midfield where Tuchel has made his first really big call. His predecessor Gareth Southgate and indeed Lee Carsley, who oversaw the Nations League qualifiers on an interim basis, often talked about England’s problem in the number six position – or ‘pivot’ as he used to call it.

Arsenal’s Declan Rice is first pick in that position but the disappearance of Kalvin Phillips has left a hole yet to be filled. Carsley tried Angel Gomes of Lille while Manchester United’s Kobbie Mainoo rose to prominence in last summer’s European Championships.

Veteran Ajax midfielder Jordan Henderson has returned to the side after some time in the cold

Notable omissions by the new manager include Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White

But with Gomes overlooked and Mainoo injured, it’s hard to see in particular how a player like Gallagher doesn’t make this selection.

Henderson’s time at Ajax has been less than spectacular and his recent minutes at the Amsterdam club have not been overwhelming. Indeed the last time we really saw him was in January when he clashed with a Dutch reporter who had accused him of pushing for a transfer window move to Monaco.

There is no doubting Henderson’s commitment to England. The former Liverpool captain was a mainstay for many years, a calm and intelligent presence in the heart of the England midfield as they made progress in the 2021 Euros and indeed the Qatar World Cup that followed.

The 34-year-old was a regular member of Southgate’s leadership group and a voice in the England dressing room that everybody would listen to. But his move to Saudi in the summer of 2023 saw him drop off the map rather. It has been known for a while that he would welcome a move back to the Premier League but no acceptable offers were forthcoming and perhaps that tells us much.

But he is back with England now and Tuchel will live or die by that decision. To misquote a famous Sir Alex Ferguson line: ‘Lads, It’s only Albania and Latvia’ and it’s true that England should come through these two games comfortably whoever Tuchel sends out in white.

But in terms of Henderson and the World Cup of 2026, it’s much harder to square the circle. Tuchel – appointed all the way back in October – has delivered his first mic drop moment.