Lewis Hall using World Cup rejection as motivation following England return
· Yahoo Sports
Newcastle United left-back Lewis Hall has revealed he is channeling the disappointment of his FIFA World Cup omission as motivation this season.
The full-back has hit the ground running for his club this campaign, earning an immediate recall from Thomas Tuchel following his summer snub. With a fresh contract signed at Newcastle and looking in excellent condition, Hall is determined to make the England left-back position his own.
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When asked whether the World Cup heartbreak was serving as a driving force, Hall said, via The Mirror: "Yeah, I think it's important to use that. Obviously, you don't want to get too worked up on it and too down about it, because that can also come across quite negative.
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"So, I'm using that frustration and I think anyone who was not in the squad is going to be disappointed. I think everyone will be doing the same to try and get themselves back on the squad.
"Whenever you're in the squad, ultimately you've got the shirt, you've got to do what you can to keep it. When you're not in the squad, you've got to do what you can to try and take it off other people.
"I think that's what everyone describes as healthy competition, and that's important to pushing the team forward and the nation forward. I think that gets the best out of players. I think I'm in the squad now, and it's my job to make sure I stay in the squad.
"I think that's what football is about. It's all about your chances. I think in order to get where you want to be, you're going to get chances to impress, and as long as you take these chances, I think you can create whatever you want to create, really. So, yeah, I'm in the squad now, which I'm really grateful for. When I do get an opportunity, I'm hoping that I can take it."
Hall appears poised to feature against the Czech Republic with Nico O'Reilly facing fitness concerns, and he's eager to make an impression on Tuchel, who handed him his Chelsea debut.
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Surprisingly, Hall even expressed understanding for Tuchel when he phoned to inform him of his World Cup omission. He declined to elaborate on that conversation.
Nevertheless, despite being left out, Hall revealed he watched every match at the tournament.
He added: "I think for me, it's important that we keep that relationship just between me and him with what he said and what we discussed. But he knew that I was going be disappointed, and it wasn't only me, he would have spoken to a lot of people in the summer who would have been disappointed.
"And as much as it's not a nice phone call for me to receive, I know it's obviously tough for him, because he knows that it's a dream for everyone to play in a World Cup. So I'm not going to discuss what we said."
Hall was born on September 8, 2004, coinciding with an England match when they secured victory in Poland. Perhaps that's a positive sign. He continued: "I did not know that. I was born in the afternoon, I think, four o'clock in the afternoon. Just before kick-off. Maybe I was a lucky charm."