Ben Chilwell hopes Chelsea role change will boost England chances

The Chelsea left back faces competition from Manchester United’s Luke Shaw for an England starting spot

(The FA via Getty Images)

Ben Chilwell hopes his switch to a wing-back role at Chelsea could boost his chances of being included in England’s line-up for this month’s 2022 World Cup qualifiers.

Chilwell was among the 26 players named in coach Gareth Southgate’s squad last week for qualifying matches against San Marino, Albania and Poland.

The 24-year-old has thrived under new Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel, who has deployed a 3-5-2 formation with Chilwell playing as a left wing-back instead of his usual position on the left side of a back four.

“If you look at the formation England are playing, the formation we’re playing here at the moment (at Chelsea) gives us the best possible chance to get used to playing in the positions that England want us to play in,” Chilwell said.

“Hopefully that gives us a good chance going into the summer - that we can be used.”

Read more

• Lewis Hamilton ‘being used’ by Black Lives Matter, claims Bernie Ecclestone
• Trent Alexander-Arnold’s England exile is not the most bizarre in Liverpool’s history
• Roman Abramovich launches defamation proceedings over Putin’s People book
• ‘It’s nice that it’s just the norm for us’: Life in the most gender equal sport on the planet

England host San Marino on Thursday before playing away against Albania on Sunday and at home against Poland on March 31 in the qualifiers.

The former Leicester City defender said he was also looking forward to competing against Manchester United’s Luke Shaw for a spot in the team for the Euros in June.

“Going into the Euros, if me and Luke are battling it out and trying to prove who’s having the best club form going into the tournament, that’s only a positive,” he said.

Reuters