England manager, Gareth Southgate hasn’t ruled out the “definitive” prospect of taking uncapped players to UEFA Euro 2024.
James Trafford, Jarrad Branthwaite, Jarell Quansah, Curtis Jones and Adam Wharton are the only uncapped players in England’s preliminary squad, ahead of their warm-up friendlies against Bosnia & Herzegovina then Iceland.
Speaking at his press conference ahead of the Bosnia & Herzegovina clash tomorrow (3 June), Southgate iterated that he won’t be “just giving caps,” to young players, with the Euros preparation his main priority despite having provided “brilliant experiences” in purely selecting them for the squad.
Teasing his selection plans in terms of uncapped players for their first warm-up friendly, Southgate commented: “Some will be involved tomorrow, some might not, some might travel to Germany, some might not. I can’t be definitive on that yet.”
On his main ambitions for both friendlies, Southgate revealed that assessing tactical options and giving game time to fringe players are within his plans before he make his final squad selection.
“Some players need minutes, some players are short, the whole group that’s been with us have had a couple of weeks without a game so everyone will benefit.
“There’s a physical aspect we’re looking at and then an opportunity to see some combinations, see players in different positions, some with fewer caps than others playing in what will be a brilliant atmosphere. Lots of objectives and I think the boys will play well. They’ve come with a top mentality.”
Luke Shaw, Harry Maguire, John Stones, Bukayo Saka and Anthony Gordon are ruled out of tomorrow’s game at St James’ Park, Newcastle, due to injury and fitness concerns.
Southgate though believes that Saka and Gordon will be available to feature against Iceland on Friday 7 June at Wembley Stadium, London.
Jude Bellingham won’t be available for neither friendly after his involvement in Real Madrid’s Champions League title success at Wembley yesterday (1 June), and Southgate confirmed that the 20 year-old midfielder will be part of the Euros squad despite missing both friendlies.
“He will be off this week because we want him fresh. We try to think about the individual. He’s super professional so he’s going to tick over but for us we didn’t need to see him before next Saturday.”
Southgate proceeded to praise Bellingham’s family for their role in his development, as he said: “You saw him with his family, they have to take enormous credit. That’s the way he is. He is authentic and has humility and understanding.
Kiernan Trippier will captain the team against Bosnia & Herzegovina in a “very special” moment at the home ground of his current club – Newcastle United.
Trippier echoed Southgate’s sentiments about Bellingham as he quipped: “It doesn’t seem like he’s a 20-year-old. He’s so mature and it comes with pressure at Real Madrid. All the boys are delighted for him. Hopefully he can bring that form with England.”
Leave a Reply