"I felt I was going to be more impactful at the Euros, McAtee tells FourFourTwo. I helped the under-21s get to the Euros, so to miss out would have been heartbreaking. I was a big part of the team and knew I'd be the captain I'd been captain at a previous camp, and I'd seen that Taylor Harwood-Bellis was injured."
"McAtee knew that his game time would likely have been limited at the Club World Cup, having been a substitute for for 18 of his 27 appearances, with the club having bought Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki ahead of the tournament. While the likes of Jobe Bellingham and Liam Delap opted to head to the Club World Cup, McAtee's decision to link up with Carsley and England would quickly been proved right, as City lost to Al Hilal in the last-16 in the United States"
FIFA's expanded Club World Cup in the USA clashed with the European Under-21 Championship in Slovakia, forcing players to choose between club and country. James McAtee opted to join Lee Carsley's England U21s after being given the captain's armband, citing his role in qualifying and the chance to be more impactful. McAtee had spent 12 years at Manchester City and faced limited game time prospects after being a substitute for 18 of 27 appearances and City signing Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki. Several teammates chose the Club World Cup, but City lost in the last-16 while England defended their U21 crown.
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