Former Chelsea defender Marc Guehi received his first England call-up on Thursday afternoon ahead of the Three Lions' friendlies with Switzerland and the Ivory Coast.
Gareth Southgate's side take on the countries on Saturday, March 26 and Tuesday, March 29, respectively. Guehi is part of the squad for the first time, with the ex-Blues youngster impressing for Crystal Palace this term.
Explaining his decision, Southgate said this on Guehi: "Anybody around the squad now is of course in contention for the World Cup. With Marc, he's had a really consistent season.
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"We've been very impressed with him on and off the ball, in the biggest games, he's been very calm. We know a lot about him through our development teams. He's a junior World Cup winner.
"There are some centre-halves that are pushing and were very close, but we've added Marc and Ben White this time. We think it's a good opportunity to see two slightly younger players and see how they cope with being with us."
The 21-year-old defender has featured 28 times in the Premier League for Crystal Palace in his debut season with the south London club and has been one of Patrick Vieira's most consistent performers - showing his class in the goalless draw with Manchester City on Monday evening. He has really earned this call-up.
Guehi took the decision to make the permanent switch away from Chelsea last summer, after enjoying a strong season on loan at Championship club Swansea City. The centre-back admitted at the time it was a tough decision to leave Stamford Bridge after coming through the academy, but it has certainly paid off for the defender.
He said this in September: "It was not an easy decision for me to leave Chelsea. I was at the club for so long - since I was seven-years-old. I am extremely grateful for everyone who has helped me get so far and it's because of them I'm here.
"I felt like it was the right decision for me to move to Palace. I wanted to play regular football at a high level in the Premier League and test myself to see how far I can go. I think I will really improve myself. So looking at it that way, I think it was the right decision. My mentality is to get the most out of myself."
