Bournemouth's James Hill Earns First England Call-Up

Bournemouth defender James Hill has been called up to the England squad for the first time. He replaces Ezri Konsa, who has been ruled out of Thursday's Nations League match against Croatia at Wembley. The Nations League is a competition between national teams, and England's game is a chance to add to their squad in a busy autumn.

Konsa's problem is a knee injury. He was substituted during Wednesday's Champions League win at Slavia Prague, and the injury has forced him out of the England plans. Thomas Tuchel, England's manager, has added Hill to the squad in his place. Hill is 24 and plays as a centre-back, the central defender who stands in the heart of the back line.

The call-up is a reward for a long, slow climb. Hill joined Bournemouth from Fleetwood in January 2022 for an undisclosed fee. In his first three and a half years on the south coast, he made only 24 appearances. Many players would have drifted away in that time. Hill kept working, and last season he became a regular in the side as Bournemouth achieved their highest top-flight finish, sixth.

This season he has been hard to leave out. He has played in every game of Bournemouth's first-ever Europa League campaign, the second tier of European club competition. He has also played every minute of their Premier League season so far. That kind of consistency is what gets noticed by a national team manager scanning the squad for defenders.

Bournemouth are in good form. They are on an eight-match winning run in all competitions, and they sit seventh in the Premier League table. Their rise has been steady rather than sudden, built on a defence that has been there week after week.

Elsewhere in England's camp, Dan Burn came in on Sunday to replace fellow centre-back Marc Guehi, who withdrew with a hip injury. So the back line is being rebuilt quickly, with two new faces in a short space of time. For Hill, it is a chance to show what he can do on the biggest stage his club and country can offer.

For a player who spent years in the background, a first England call-up at 24 is a moment to savour. Whether Hill gets a minute against Croatia on Thursday remains to be seen, but the squad place alone tells a story of patience paying off.