Aston Villa star Tyrone Mings thought shock England squad call-up ‘was a prank’
TYRONE MINGS was so shocked over his England call-up that he thought he had been pranked.
The Aston Villa defender has been rewarded for his fine form by being named in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the first time ahead of their Euro qualifiers against Bulgaria and Kosovo next month.
Mings, 26, joined the Midlands side on a permanent £21million deal this summer – a fee that many scoffed at.
And his rise to prominence has been so great that even he was surprised to hear the news earlier today.
He said: “I thought it was a prank when I first found out.
“I got a text when I came in from training from the England player liaison officer, Emily her name is.
“I text back saying: ‘Oh s**t.’ Excuse my language. She then called me and said: ‘I’m not joking.’
“It was only when I spoke to her on the phone, I knew it was genuine.”
Mings began his career at non-league Yate Town and considered quitting professional football before signing for Chippenham.
It was there where he earned his calling at Ipswich before joining newly-promoted Bournemouth in 2015.
ACCA WITH LADBROKES Pick up a whole load of acca features to help you land the big one
most read in football
But he struggled to make an impact in the first-team making just 10 league starts in over two years before his loan move to Villa.
Mings was also joined by Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Mason Mount as players who have earned their first call-ups.
Leicester’s James Maddison will be hoping to make his international debut after being handed his second call-up to the squad.