Newcastle United star rejects nationality switch talk and reveals England ‘burning desire’

The 30-year-old has been capped four times by the Three Lions, scoring once. He has also represented England at Under-21s level but hasn’t received a call-up since joining Newcastle in 2022.

It’s been over three years since Wilson’s last appearance for England but it has not been for the want of trying.

Wilson has been in good form since joining Newcastle, scoring 22 goals in 47 Premier League appearances for the club. But a series of injury issues have limited both his time on the pitch and his chances of an international recall.

The Newcastle No. 9 is still striving to get back into the England set-up and join the likes of Nick Pope and Kieran Trippier in Gareth Southgate’s squad.

Wilson is half-Jamaican and would have been eligible to represent the Caribbean nation at international level, but remains committed to England.

London-born West Ham United forward Michail Antonio was previously called-up by England but didn’t earn a cap and opted to represent Jamaica at international level.

And when speaking on the Footballer’s Football Podcast, Antonio asked Wilson if he would be tempted to join him and represent Jamaica.

“If I hadn't at 30, played for England, I'd definitely be pushing to play for Jamaica,” Wilson admitted.

“I had the opportunity a few years ago [to play for England] thankfully so I took that and wanted to build on it but unfortunately I've not built on it as much as I would have liked.

"So that's now something that's a burning desire inside where I'm like, I'm getting back there and that's my mentality, it's been taken away from me now I'm going to get it back.”

Wilson is expected to return from a hamstring injury for Newcastle at Fulham this Saturday (3pm kick-off).

He has a very slim chance of making England’s 2022 World Cup squad in Qatar this winter. But with Southgate set to decide his England squad by November 13, Wilson still has eight Premier League matches to stay fit and give himself the best possible chance of getting in the side.