An unforgettable week makes England newcomer Dan Burn believe anything is possible

It must feel like anything is possible for Dan Burn right now.

A day after ending Newcastle's 70-year wait for a major domestic trophy, the defender met with new England coach Thomas Tuchel after receiving his first call-up for the national team.

Now he has his sights set on the 2026 World Cup.

“I would say (last) Monday it definitely wasn’t on my radar, but now I think that’s got to be the ultimate aim,” Burn told a news conference on Tuesday.

No wonder he opted against getting fully involved in Newcastle's celebrations following the English League Cup final triumph against Liverpool on Sunday.

Burn, who scored the opening goal in the 2-1 win at Wembley, was due to report to England's training base in Burton the following morning.

“It was strange. As soon as I left the stadium my focus completely switched to this. I had my family here and the kids and we ended up getting on the bus about 12 o’clock back to the hotel. It was getting a bit rowdy and I was just ready to go to sleep! There will be time to celebrate.”

The 32-year-old Burn has taken an unlikely route to the top.

A much-travelled career has seen him play for long periods in the lower reaches of English soccer with clubs like Darlington, Yeovil and Wigan. After his Premier League debut with Fulham, he was released at the age of 24.

He rebuilt his career and eventually made his way back to the top flight with Brighton. He joined a wave of Newcastle signings following its Saudi takeover in 2021.

A boyhood Newcastle fan from nearby Blyth, he has earned iconic status with his towering header at Wembley.

But just a few days before that magical moment, Burn learned he was going to be part of Tuchel's first England squad since taking on the role in January.

“I’ve definitely had worst weeks,” he said with a smile. "I feel like I’ve I’ve been doubted a lot over my career. There’s not many people who watched us play at Darlo (Darlington) would say that I'd be sat doing a press conference for England.

“I feel like I deserve to be here and I just want to take this opportunity.”

James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

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Newcastle United players celebrate with the trophy after winning the EFL Cup final soccer match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Newcastle's Dan Burn, left, and Newcastle's Fabian Schaer celebrate after winning the EFL Cup final soccer match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Newcastle's Dan Burn celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the EFL Cup final soccer match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

Liverpool's goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher dives but fails to save the goal from Newcastle's Dan Burn during the EFL Cup final soccer match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Newcastle's Dan Burn celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the EFL Cup final soccer match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

LONDON (AP) — Britain's Conservative Party, which governed the country from 2010 until it suffered its worst-ever electoral defeat two years ago, was plunged into fresh turmoil Thursday after its leader sacked the man widely seen as her greatest rival for apparently plotting to defect from the party.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said in a video and statement on X that she sacked the party's justice spokesperson Robert Jenrick due to “irrefutable evidence that he was plotting in secret to defect" in a way that was “designed to be as damaging as possible” to the party. Badenoch also ejected Jenrick from the party's ranks in Parliament and suspended his party membership.

“The British public are tired of political psychodrama and so am I,” she said. “They saw too much of it in the last government, they’re seeing too much of it in this government. I will not repeat those mistakes.”

Though Badenoch did not specify which party Jenrick was planning to switch to, Nigel Farage, leader of the hard-right Reform UK party, said he had “of course” had conversations with him.

In the past 12 months, the Conservatives have suffered a string of defections to Reform UK, including some former Cabinet ministers.

Farage said in a press briefing in Edinburgh, the Scottish capital, that coincided with Badenoch's statement that, “hand on heart,” he wasn't about to present Jenrick as the latest Conservative to defect to Reform, an upstart, anti-immigration party.

“I’ll give him a ring this afternoon,” he said. “I might even buy him a pint, you never know.”

The Conservatives are fighting not just the Labour government to their left, but Reform UK to the right.

Reform, which only has a handful of lawmakers in the House of Commons, is tipped to make a major breakthrough in an array of elections this May, including those to the Scottish and Welsh Parliaments, at the expense of both the Conservatives and Labour.

Jenrick, who continued to attract speculation about leadership ambitions despite being beaten in 2024, has appeared more open than Badenoch to the prospect of some sort of deal between the Conservatives and Reform to unite the right in the run-up to next general election, which has to take place by 2029.

Jenrick has yet to respond to the news of his sacking.

Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose favorability ratings have fallen sharply since the general election following a series of missteps, questioned why it took Badenoch “so long” to sack Jenrick given all the speculation that he was looking to either challenge her or to defect to Reform.

Badenoch, a small-state, low-tax advocate, has shifted the Conservatives to the right, announcing policies similar to those of U.S. President Donald Trump, including a promise to deport 150,000 unauthorized immigrants a year.

Her poor poll ratings and lackluster performance in Parliament had stirred speculation that she could be ousted long before the next election.

However, she has been making a better impression in Parliament in recent weeks, particularly during her weekly questioning of Starmer, in a way that appears to have cemented her position as leader.

The party is no stranger to turmoil, having gone through six leaders in the space of 10 years, five of them serving as prime minister. Widespread anger at the way the Conservatives were governing Britain led to their defeat at the general election in July 2024, when they lost around two-thirds of their lawmakers, their worst performance since the modern party was created nearly 200 years ago.

Robert Jenrick speaking at a Reform UK press conference in Westminster, London, where it was announced the former Conservative MP has joined Reform UK, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)

Robert Jenrick with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage at a Reform UK press conference in Westminster, London, where it was announced the former Conservative MP has joined Reform UK, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Jordan Pettitt/PA via AP)

Reform Party leader Nigel Farage addresses protesters outside the Iranian embassy, in London, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (Yui Mok/PA via AP)

Kemi Badenoch with Robert Jenrick before being announced as the new Conservative Party leader following the vote by party members at 8 Northumberland Avenue in central London, Nov. 3, 2024. (Stefan Rousseau/PA via AP)