Ben White has broken his silence after he prematurely left the England squad in Qatar. The Arsenal defender left the Three Lions' training base in Al Wakrah and returned home due to personal reasons.
He didn't feature in any of England's group stage fixtures as Gareth Southgate guided the nation to qualification into the knockout stages. The Three Lions saw out the remainder of the tournament with a 25-man squad - which was still larger than in past World Cups - because it is was too late to call-up a replacement.
England went out of the quarter-final after losing 2-1 against France. With White back under Mikel Arteta's stewardship and in training with Arsenal, he took to social media to break his silence since the early omission.
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In an Instagram post that featured three photos of White, on the training pitch and in the gym with some weights, he said: "We back baby."
Southgate was asked about an alleged 'bust-up' between White and England coach Steve Holland ahead of the Three Lions' clash with the reigning champions. He said: "What I’ve been shown was alleged and there was another word that was used [in the article].
"I think by commenting on the story I could be giving it any form of credibility, really. We explained why Ben left the camp and I think it’s important that that is respected, really."
Arsenal are set to play against AC Milan on Tuesday evening before locking horns with Juventus on December 17 in what are a paid of mid-season friendlies. The Gunners' Premier League campaign is then set to recommence on Boxing Day against West Ham.
White will likely play a key role in Arteta's side as Arsenal look to defend their place at the top of the Premier League. He has been a key player for the north Londoners so far this season, playing in every game of the league, starting 14 out of 14.
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