Mason Mount is targeting an England return after taking a call from new boss Thomas Tuchel which has kept his World Cup hopes alive.
Mount is focused on playing a full season for Manchester United after two injury-hit campaigns at Old Trafford since his £60 million ($79.9m) move from Chelsea in 2023.
But he admits the prospect of playing for England again for the first time since 2022 is providing extra motivation -- particularly after a call from Tuchel, his former boss at Stamford Bridge.
"He [Tuchel] called me," Mount said.
"He said that he's calling a lot of players and just wanted to catch up. I don't know how many players he probably called, 40 or 50 maybe.
"But it was good to see his face, good to catch up with him, good to speak to him. He looked in loads of energy, like I remember, and was bang up for the new role.
"He was very excited and it was obviously good to catch up with him and speak to him and see what he was preparing," he said.
Mount was a key part of Gareth Southgate's England team that reached the final of Euro 2020.
He hasn't played international football since the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after suffering a series of injuries.
The 26-year old knows Tuchel well after the pair won the Champions League together at Chelsea.
Mount revealed the German offered "no guarantees" of a return to the national team, but he's keen to throw his hat in the ring for a place at the 2026 World Cup with the help of a positive season at United.
"I played quite a bit under him," Mount said.
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"We won the Champions League, so that's a positive. But I think with England it's totally different now. I think the competition with places, the amount of people he can pick, it's a bit different than club football. So I don't think it goes hand in hand.
"He said to me, there's no guarantees, even though you played for me. But it gives you more, you want to push even more to be able to be back in the squad. So it was really good to speak to him. He looked very excited.
"As a player, you always want to play for your country and that's such a big honour to play for your country.
"Any opportunity that you get to put that shirt on is amazing. I know what it means to be able to play for your country. I'd love to have that opportunity again, but I'm focusing on club football first."