Gareth Southgate has decided to delay naming his final England squad for Euro 2020 today after a late change of heart and will instead wait until next Tuesday before trimming the group to 26 players.
England’s manager has seen his plans complicated by the involvement of English clubs in the Champions League and Europa League finals this week, and he wants time to assess players who have been struggling with injuries. Southgate, who is increasingly likely to find no place for Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold in the final cut, is set to name a provisional squad at 1pm on Tuesday, with the number potentially exceeding 30.
England have concerns over a few key players before their opening game against Croatia on June 13th. Harry Maguire is out of Manchester United’s Europa League final against Villarreal on Wednesday because of damaged ankle ligaments, Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson has just returned from a long-term groin injury and the Burnley goalkeeper Nick Pope is to have knee surgery. Leeds United’s Kalvin Phillips is also a doubt after suffering a shoulder injury on Sunday.
Southgate has bought himself time with his U-turn. He will not want to be without Maguire, one of his most important defenders, and he values Henderson’s leadership. England are unlikely to field their strongest side in warm-up matches against Austria on June 2nd and Romania on June 6th in Middlesbrough because of Southgate’s desire to give players a week’s break.
After United’s game against Villarreal, the Champions League final between Chelsea and Manchester City takes place in Porto on Saturday. The tight schedule means that United’s Dean Henderson, Luke Shaw, Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford will miss the Austria game, and players from City and Chelsea are doubtful for the visit from Romania. Southgate has Kyle Walker, John Stones, Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling at City and Reece James, Ben Chilwell and Mason Mount at Chelsea.
Southgate is expected to bulk up his squad by including fringe players on Tuesday. That could give players such as Danny Ings, Bukayo Saka, Ollie Watkins, Eric Dier, Ben Godfrey, Michael Keane and Jesse Lingard a chance to catch the manager’s eye.
The main talking point will be whether Southgate risks a public backlash by leaving out Alexander-Arnold. The widespread expectation is that the Liverpool right-back will be the most high-profile omission. Southgate is edging towards picking Walker, James and Atlético Madrid’s Kieran Trippier instead. However James’s place is not certain. – Guardian
