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Southgate says it is a case of ‘when and not if’ Phil Foden is called up to the senior squad
Last Updated: 16/11/19 12:05am
Gareth Southgate believes England’s inexperienced squad can be “hugely competitive” at Euro 2020.
Harry Kane scored a hat-trick on Thursday as the Three Lions thrashed Montenegro 7-0, sealing top spot in Group A.
England’s line-up was their youngest since 1959 and Southgate has consistently shown trust in young prospects and hopes it will reap rewards.
“You can never tell, because you just don’t know who’s going to be available, who’s going to be on form,” Southgate said.
“We’ve got a fairly settled squad, but there are obviously players who’ve been with us in the last 18 months and are still in our thinking.
“We are always learning about the players more in the really big matches and the really high-pressure games.
3:46 “But we feel the team [against Montenegro] was extremely young, the squad is young.
“We’ve got to get the balance right with that, but these, in most cases, are our best players we think.
“Although next summer is going to be before a lot of them peak, we can still be hugely competitive and our challenge is to be able to compete, as we found a way to compete in Russia, with a squad that’s very exciting.”
Door is still open for Alli and Foden
Southgate is clear what England’s best team would be if he had to pick it tomorrow, but knows he has to juggle his desire to keep a settled side with adaptability.
The Three Lions boss used Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – who capped his first start since March 2018 with a goal against Montenegro – as an example after a knee injury denied him the chance to play a key role at the World Cup.
“The good thing is we’ve got really good options in every position,” Southgate said.
“And that’s key, because you’ll all remember plenty of tournaments where we’ve had a key injury on the eve of the tournament and then we’ve all been in meltdown about what might happen. So there is some strength in depth.”
Southgate is not ruling out players that are currently out of favour but have played a part before, name-checking World Cup star Dele Alli, just as he is keeping tabs on other young talent.
The Three Lions boss says that “it’s a case of when, rather than if” someone like Manchester City’s Phil Foden is called up, unless “something goes wildly off-track for him”, but such call-ups rely on form and fitness.
There is no doubt that the likes of Alli and Foden would love to be involved next summer, with the country sure to be gripped as at Euro 96, with England’s three group games, one last-16 match, both semi-finals and the final all to be played at Wembley.
“It’s going to be an incredible experience for the players, for our fans,” Southgate added.
“We want to make Wembley somewhere that teams fear coming, that’s part of the message I gave to the players. So, yes, it’ll be a very, very special event to be a part of.
“And the players deserve it. They’ve played extremely well against opponents we should beat, in a group we should win, for sure, but the quality of their play and the number of goals they’ve scored…”
0:53 Southgate impressed with goals scored
The England manager said he has been impressed by the team’s goal-scoring ability.
“I used to look at Germany in qualification and they were racking up sixes and sevens and we used to be struggling to break down teams who played with a low block.
“We’ve now managed to play in a way that’s been able to solve that problem.
“Now we’ve got to solve the different sorts of problems that come with the higher-ranked opponents, and that’s the challenge of the next few months.
