Phil Foden’s inclusion in England’s World Cup squad is far from certain (Image: Getty)
The World Cup is getting closer and closer. Manager Thomas Tuchel has named his latest England squad for tomorrow (Friday) morning’s matches against Uruguay and Japan at Wembley. These two games will be the Three Lions’ last matches until mid-June, when England take on Costa Rica just days before a transatlantic trip for soccer’s biggest tournament.
England’s World Cup opens against Croatia on June 17, but there is still much debate over who will and should be in the tournament’s 26-man squad. Tuchel will be without several big-name players in his latest squad, with Reece James and Jude Bellingham injured. This opens the possibility for some of his other teammates to insist on boarding the plane to the United States. Express Sport has named six England players who should not play at the World Cup…
Charlie Mallam
As for BDB, as he is affectionately known in the North East, he should be missed out as England have better centre-backs and left-backs. Tuchel has several players who can work at both right-back and left-back (see here: Tino Livramento and Jed Spence) who should also outpace him.
Byrne’s height gives him a profile that none of his team-mates, and even most of his rivals, don’t have, making him excellent at set pieces. However, even if one of the main players is injured, I think there are other players who would like to play against Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal. Overburn.
He sits below Lewis Hall, Nico O’Reilly, Spence and possibly Luke Shaw in the left-back pecking order. At centre-back, Marc Ghehi, Ezri Konsa, John Stones, Harry Maguire and Fikayo Tomori are better. Sorry, Dan!
The youngest goalscorer in Premier League history is a phenomenon. But it’s still too early for him to go to the World Cup, even if he comes off the bench as an exciting wildcard. He still has a lot of growing to do, and pushing himself too far too soon could have dire consequences in a decade or so.
Mikel Arteta said this week: “If we can just lower the temperature and understand what’s best for this boy at this age. He’s doing phenomenal things, we all know that. Let’s lower the temperature a bit more.”
The teenager has a big future for England, but we hope he can showcase his talent at the Under-19 Euros in Wales instead. The 2030 World Cup could instead be Dauman’s stage. And probably Rio Ngumoja’s too.
archie griggs
I agree with Charlie. There’s no denying that Max Dowman is a player with huge potential, but when it comes to England he should be a player of the future, not the present. Anyone who really thinks he should be in the World Cup because of that one goal against Everton is worth listening to.
For Dauman’s own development, it would be irresponsible to put him on a plane. He needs to be managed carefully and not run out onto the ground before finishing school.
Performance at club level is required to be selected to represent England, especially in major tournaments. That has been clear ever since Thomas Tuchel took over as manager.
Therefore, Conor Gallagher will not be able to get close to the team as things stand. He has registered just one assist in eight games since joining Tottenham, and has shown little improvement defensively. There are far better players than Gallagher, and adding him to the World Cup squad would be a waste of plane slots.
Express Sports team says Max Dowman is still too young for England’s first team (Image: Getty)
amos murphy
Things were starting to look up again for Phil Foden after a disappointing season last time out, but the playmaker has once again fallen off the face of the earth and feels he is, in fact, a long way from being England’s representative at the moment. The fact that he didn’t see the pitch at all during Manchester City’s recent Champions League clash with Real Madrid speaks volumes.
It’s time for manager Thomas Tuchel to abandon this experiment once and for all. Sure, Jordan Henderson has plenty of experience and has played well for Brentford this season, but England have too many classy operators in the middle of the park for the former Liverpool man to get on board. Tuchel needs all the vigor he can get in the North American heat and unfortunately that’s not what he’s getting from the 35-year-old Henderson.
Jack McEachen
I also don’t think Foden should go. Apart from six goals in five games this winter, what has Foden done to justify selection this summer? The player has not scored for City since December and has played just 182 minutes in the last six league games. Even Pep Guardiola sidelined him. Jude Bellingham is England’s best number 10, with Bukayo Saka starting on the right. Foden caused chaos when Gareth Southgate tried to force him into the team, so why bring up that carnage again? Especially when there are dozens of players in better shape at his position.
This is a really difficult decision. And Tino Livramento is sure to go on to have a great international career. However, Reece James and Trent Alexander-Arnold should go to the World Cup as England’s right-backs if they are fit. They are too talented to avoid. Libramento can also play on the left, but with the rise of Nico O’Reilly along with Lewis Hall, there are better players on that side as well. But his time will come.
