Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold is ruled out of this summer’s Euro 2020 for England after suffering a quad injury.
Alexander-Arnold suffered a grade two quad tear in the closing minutes of England’s friendly win over Austria at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium last night (2 June), which forced him off the pitch as the hosts finished with ten men.
Following a medical assessment and scans today, it has been confirmed that Alexander-Arnold is set to be sidelined for four to six weeks, meaning that the fullback will miss the entirety of Euro 2020 and depart the Three Lions squad to return to Liverpool for further treatment.
Gareth Southgate therefore now has a difficult decision to make as to who replaces Alexander-Arnold in the squad, having dropped Ben White, Ben Godfrey, James Ward-Prowse, Jesse Lingard and Ollie Watkins from the final squad alongside goalkeeper – Aaron Ramsdale.
No decision on a replacement will be made until after England’s international friendly against Romania on Sunday 6 June.
Alexander-Arnold is the second drop-out after Mason Greenwood withdrew on Tuesday with a long-term injury, which has impacted his club performance for Manchester United in recent months.
Who Could Replace Alexander-Arnold?
With a place in England’s 26-man Euro squad now available, Southgate now faces a headache as to who to call-up given the outrage over Lingard’s snub.
Ramsdale is definitely out of contention given that he was part of the goalkeeper quartet initially called up, whilst White and Godfrey are both centre backs so it is difficult to see either player receiving a recall although White can also play in midfield which counts in his favour.
Watkins meanwhile is a striker so he too is unlikely to get recalled which leaves midfielders, Ward-Prowse and Lingard as the realistic replacements due to midfield currently looking very light with only five players selected at present.
Much of Southgate’s decision therefore is likely to boil down to tactical and formation plans because Ward-Prowse adds extra options for set piece play and in passive midfield play, whereas Lingard is quick in his ability and in form with the versatility to play in midfield or as wide forward as he did against Austria.
This therefore is a simple battle between Ward-Prowse and Lingard for Alexander-Arnold’s position in the squad, given that Southgate already has adequate cover at right back and midfield could do with a boost in tactical options.
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