FootballFanCast.com’s World Cup coverage is brought to you by 5p0rtz.com – try 5p0rtz.com’s World Cup Pool Predictor for free and you could win £1million! Click here to play.
Gareth Southgate clearly has a strong idea of the England team he wants to field in Russia this summer. While most international managers selected a preliminary 29-man cohort for the round of warmup friendlies, Southgate choose a 23-man squad only – putting the remaining six players on standby.
That suggests Southgate’s mind is pretty much set in terms of team selection, but as well as ensuring the Three Lions are prepared for the coming tournament, the friendlies against Nigeria and Costa Rica also represent a chance for a few players on the fringes of his plans to make the England gaffer think twice.
With that in mind, we take a look at five players who could force their way into England’s World Cup starting XI…
Trent Alexander-Arnold
[ffc_insert title=”Try 5p0rtz’s World Cup pool predictor for FREE and you could win £1MILLION!” name=”Win £1MILLION with 5p0rtz” image_ link=”https://po.st/5p0rtz” link_text=”Click here to play” ]
Could Trent Alexander-Arnold’s fairy tale season, becoming a first-team regular just in time to start Liverpool’s Champions League final showdown against Real Madrid, end with a starring role at the World Cup? In terms of energy and mobility, the 19-year-old certainly suits the identity of this England team, which is built around it’s ability to launch counter-attacks from all areas of the pitch.
The Reds prospect is glaringly inexperienced – he’s yet to receive an England cap – but with that in mind, making the squad was in itself a statement of how highly Southgate rates him. Kieran Trippier is a solid option for England, but Alexander-Arnold feels like a special talent and the wing-back roles are vital to the efficiency of Southgate’s 3-1-4-2 setup.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s unfortunate injury has left a hole in England’s midfield that Ruben Loftus-Cheek appears naturally equipped to fill. The Chelsea youngster shares that ability to be direct and dynamic from midfield, which is exactly what Southgate’s looking for in the dual roaming roles just in front of Jordan Henderson.
The England gaffer knows Loftus-Cheek well from his U21 days too, but the level of competition for those positions represents a significant challenge for the 22-year-old, who has only really come to the end of his first full season as a regular at senior level.
As things stand, Dele Alli and Jesse Lingard will likely be Southgate’s first picks for the lung-busters from midfield.
Ashley Young
On paper, Danny Rose remains the standout candidate for England’s left wing-back berth, so it’s down to Ashley Young to prove being battle-hardened by a long season with Manchester United has him better prepared for the tournament than the Tottenham defender, who missed much of last term through injury and eventually made just ten Premier League appearances.
Rose has looked much more like his old self in the final few weeks of the season, but Young’s wicked delivery from set pieces could be a key differential should he prove to Southgate that it really adds something to England’s armoury.
Nick Pope
The No.1 jersey feels like Jordan Pickford’s to lose after England’s previous batch of friendlies but the debate rumbles on over who should be England’s World Cup glovesman and Nick Pope boasts a pretty strong case.
He’s conceded the fewest goals of any English goalkeeper in the Premier League and the fact he started the season as Tom Heaton’s understudy is testament to the strength of the Burnley shot-stopper’s mentality.
With Jack Butland and Pickford seemingly a little ahead of him in the queue though, it’s vital Pope impresses in training enough to actually get some game-time against England and Costa Rica.
Phil Jones
With Kyle Walker impressing at centre-half during the last batch of friendlies, Phil Jones’ role in this England side has come under threat – especially after his catastrophic attempt to contain Eden Hazard in the FA Cup final defeat to Chelsea.
Back in September, Southgate dubbed him England’s best defender, but the way England have evolved since then, focusing so heavily on playing out of the back, has almost eradicated the need for an out-and-out defender. That being said, John Stones is probably the most vulnerable to being edged out of England’s starting XI.
While he encapsulates everything Southgate wants from his back three, the Manchester City defender struggled for game-time towards the end of last season, losing his place to Vincent Kompany and January signing Aymeric Laporte.
[ad_pod ]