England’s Euro 2020 squad analysed: Did Gareth Southgate get it right?

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With four right-backs, four central midfielders and three big injury concerns in England’s final squad, has Gareth Southgate got it right ahead of Euro 2020?

On Monday evening, Southgate was tasked with the difficult decision of naming his final 26-man squad for the European Championship this summer, with the inclusion of four-right backs seen as the biggest taking point.

He had named a 33-man provisional squad last week, in order to give himself more time and the players another opportunity to impress during their training camp in Middlesborough, while also assessing the fitness of several key players before UEFA’s squad deadline on June 1.

After the news broke on Tuesday morning that Mason Greenwood would have to withdraw from the squad due to an ongoing injury issue, it left just six more players to be cut before Southgate faced the press later that evening, which was inevitably dominated by questions on his team selection.

The likes of James Ward-Prowse, Jesse Lingard, Ollie Watkins, Ben Godfrey, Ben White and Aaron Ramsdale joined Greenwood in not making the cut, however they will form a standby list in case England suffer any injuries before now and the start of the tournament on 11th June.

What does the final squad look like?

Your #ThreeLions squad for #EURO2020! pic.twitter.com/egVtf4ORMT

— England (@England) June 1, 2021

Who were the surprise omissions?

Jesse Lingard 

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Lingard’s season has been a story of two halves, as he struggled to make an impact during the first part of the campaign at Manchester United, mainly due to a lack of game-time as a result of Bruno Fernandes’ incredible influence since his arrival.

The 28-year-old was clearly not content with the situation and made the decision to step out of his comfort zone and link up with former United boss David Moyes at West Ham. This turned out to be an inspired choice, as he managed to notch nine goals and four assists in 16 appearances for the Hammers and propel himself back into the England setup for the first time since 2019 in the process.

Unfortunately for Lingard, Southgate has a wealth of attacking talent to choose from and despite his recent run of form deemed him surplus to requirements. It comes as one of the more surprising omissions considering the pairs good relationship in the past and the fact that form is an important aspect when building a squad for a major tournament.

James Ward-Prowse 

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One area of the squad which is looking rather sparse is central midfield, as there’s only four options capable of playing in the same position as Ward-Prowse, and none with the same dead ball expertise. He also possesses an admirable fitness record having not missed a single minute in the Premier League over the past two seasons.

As Kalvin Phillips and Jordan Henderson are struggling for fitness, with the latter having not played a single minute for Liverpool since February after suffering a groin issue, the reliability of the Saints captain could have brought more stability to the squad.

It’s certainly a risk from Southgate to take this amount of players in such a crucial position, especially considering he had an extra three players at his disposal from the usual 23-man squads. The 26-year-old could have added another dimension to the team, particularly if England were chasing a goal or staring down the barrel of another penalty shootout, he would have been a valuable asset to have.

Ollie Watkins 

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Watkins endured an excellent first campaign in the Premier League having signed from Brentford last summer in a £28 million deal and managed 14 goals as well as five assists for Aston Villa. Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough to see him make the final cut, but it says a lot more about the depth of talent in his position than Watkins himself.

The 25-year-old scored on his England debut in a 5-0 win over San Marino in March and brought something different to the others when leading the line. He bases his game off stretching the opposition and running in behind, which is completely different to Harry Kane and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, and potentially could have been helpful when looking to play on the counter attack.

Which players are struggling for fitness?

Southgate and his team will be sweating over the fitness of some key players as he’s made the bold decision to include Henderson, Harry Maguire and Marcus Rashford despite them all carrying injuries in recent weeks.

The Liverpool midfielder was unable to play any role in his sides late push for Champions League football, but has returned to training following surgery to his groin which has kept him out for the last three months.

Undoubtedly, Henderson is a vital cog in England’s side bringing some much needed experience and leadership qualities, however there is an element of risk to his inclusion as he may not be sharp enough to contribute in the early stages due to being on the sidelines for so long.

In a position of the pitch where they already have a lack of depth and previous experience playing in major tournaments, Southgate will be hoping that he’s fit in time.

The Three Lions boss provided an update on his situation in his latest press conference:

“Jordan has trained with the team all week, so that’s been good,” he said. “We’ve had to modify him through certain parts of the session. He’ll be involved in the game tomorrow. So his progress is good, but we’re realistic about what that might look like.”

Another player in a race to be fit for England’s opener against Croatia is Harry Maguire, after damaging his ankle ligaments against Aston Villa in early May. The injury ruled him out of Manchester United’s Europa League final defeat to Villarreal and Southgate admitted that it’s going to be tight for the central defender to be fit in time:

“We know exactly where he’s at. Our medical team have been over with him in Manchester. He’s not traveled to us yet with quarantine issues coming from Poland. That was a bit more complicated. He’s got a bit to do.”

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Marcus Rashford’s injury woes this season have been well documented as for the most part the he’s had to play through shoulder and back problems. The 23-year-old suffered a double stress fracture on his back early last year which seems to be an ongoing issue, therefore his game time needs to be managed effectively ahead of the busy summer schedule.

Southgate added that Rashford is yet t0 train on the grass with the team, but is confident that he’s progressing well enough to be involved in the coming days.

Why did Southgate decide to take Trent Alexander Arnold as a fourth right-back?

By far the biggest talking point surrounding the announcement was whether Alexander Arnold would join fellow right-backs Kyle Walker, Kieran Tripper and Reece James in the squad. After an impressive turnaround in form at club level since being left out of the last group of qualifiers, the Liverpool defender was rewarded with his place in the team.

Most felt that having four players fighting for one spot in the starting eleven was excessive, but Southgate’s clearly sees them as more than full-backs. One aspect that the quartet have in common is versatility, a vital asset for any modern day defender, as they can be deployed in a number of different positions in defence or midfield.

Despite some of the roles that they may be asked to play not being their natural position, it allows Southgate to adapt the system with quality options depending on our opponents, which is an important luxury to have when competing in knockout football.

Unfortunately for Alexander Arnold, he joins the list of players in a race to be fit in time for the start of the tournament, after suffering a thigh injury in England’s warmup game against Austria on Wednesday night. The extent of the injury will be known in the next 48 hours, but the situation may force Southgate to reassess his options ahead of 13th June.

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