Tyrick Mitchell says he didn’t expect to get a senior England call-up so quickly after he was drafted into Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions squad on Monday afternoon.
The 22-year-old full-back was named as one four new inclusions to the squad, with Chelsea’s Reece James and Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold among those who dropped out for upcoming friendlies against Switzerland and Ivory Coast at Wembley.
Mitchell has been on Southgate’s radar for some time and looked to have missed out on his chance to impress when the initial squad was named last week, with Palace teammates Conor Gallagher and Marc Guehi included ahead of him. That changed on Monday though as England announced their changes to the squad, with Mitchell winning his first call-up for the side along with Southampton’s Kyle Walker-Peters.
READ MORE: Gareth Southgate brings Tyrick Mitchell into England squad after Chelsea man drops out
“It’s a dream come true. I never, ever thought it would happen so quickly, so I’m literally over the moon,” Mitchell told PalaceTV. “I found out yesterday [Saturday]. I got the text and couldn’t believe it and was lost for words.”
Mitchell’s call-up comes off the back of an impressive debut campaign as Palace’s first-choice left-back. He broke through into the first team under Roy Hodgson last season but shared his responsibilities with Patrick van Aanholt. When the Dutchman left south London for Galatasaray in the summer, the Eagles decided Mitchell could hold down the spot on his own. That show of faith has already been repaid tenfold. Mitchell has been one of (if not the) most consistent performers for Patrick Vieira this season and has strung together a series of man of the match displays since the turn of the year.
An England call-up was always on the cards despite Mitchell having never been capped internationally at any level before. Now he’ll get the chance to play for the Three Lions at Wembley which is just a stone’s throw away from where he was born and raised by his mother in the London Borough of Brent.
“I didn’t even tell her. I was waiting for it to get announced,” he added when asked if he’d told his mum the news. "[Will she be excited?] Definitely. That’s one of her dreams, to see me play at Wembley. Wembley is so close to home so to be called up for England and be around it and be in Wembley Stadium is literally a dream come true.”
And while Mitchell’s call-up is down to years of hard work and dedication, there are others who have all had a big part to play in him finally getting international recognition.
“I think my teammates, the manager, everything about Palace has pushed me to understand that last year I did well, but this year I know what I’m capable of and I’m just trying to show it,” he added. “This season has been amazing. There are hopefully many more successes until the end of the season; it’s been amazing.”
