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Five World Cup wildcard picks for Gareth Southgate's England squad

Southgate has overlooked several players who could different qualities to the squad

Mark Critchley
Wednesday 21 March 2018 18:08 GMT
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Jamaal Lascelles is unlucky to have missed out on each of Gareth Southgate's squads
Jamaal Lascelles is unlucky to have missed out on each of Gareth Southgate's squads

Jack Cork

The form of both Nick Pope and James Tarkowski was rewarded in Gareth Southgate’s latest squad but there was no place for their team-mate and Burnley’s signing of the season, Jack Cork.

Cork made his international debut as a late substitute in November’s 0-0 draw with Germany but was overlooked this time around, even though England lack nailed-down options in the centre of midfield.

Bournemouth’s Lewis Cook, West Bromwich Albion’s Jake Livermore and Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere all have doubts hanging over them but ultimately all were preferred to a player who has shown he is both comfortable in possession and dominant in the middle of the park.

Jamaal Lascelles

Newcastle United’s Jamaal Lascelles is competing with Tarkowski and Ben Mee to be the most consistent English centre-half in the Premier League this season, yet he was once again overlooked by Southgate.

Swansea City’s Alfie Mawson was selected instead, and this is perhaps down to the England manager’s preference for a three-man defence and defenders who are used to passing the ball out of the backline.

Yet Lascelles is comfortable enough with the ball at his feet and if anything, England’s defence is lacking a central, unifying centre-half who can be relied upon to provide a commanding presence.

It looks as though Eric Dier will be moved into the backline to provide that very presence, but Lascelles should have been the one offered a chance to impress there.

Ryan Sessegnon

Wildcard selections do not come much wilder than a 17-year-old playing in the second tier, and the idea of Ryan Sessegnon travelling to Russia as England’s unknown quantity has seemed to capture some imaginations of late.

The Fulham youngster is a left wing-back-cum-winger who takes up positions like a poacher and has 14 Championship goals to his name this season after adopting a slight more advanced role.

A World Cup spot may seem too much too young but his manager Slavisa Jokanovic could not disagree more, recently recommending that Southgate select him, insisting: “He is not a kid, he is a man.”

Sessegnon would certainly offer some versatility down the left and if Southgate is set on a three-man defence, much of England’s forward play will hinge on the flanks. A player with knack for putting himself in goal-scoring positions would be no bad thing.

Jonjo Shelvey

As discussed, England are struggling for options in the middle of the park but the lack of creative options there is particularly acute. Wilshere, if fit and in form, adds invention and Jordan Henderson’s vision and range of passing are underrated, but there are few others.

Jonjo Shelvey can therefore feel rightly aggrieved that he was overlooked for these upcoming friendlies. The Newcastle midfielder is a tempestuous, mercurial talent but one who offers qualities that this squad lacks.

It is easily forgotten, but Shelvey’s chances of playing at an international tournament looked good in late 2015 until Swansea City, his club at the time, spiralled out of form. Bouts of indiscipline in the time since have not helped, but his form this season warrants a second chance.

Leon Bailey

It is still not entirely clear whether Bayer Leverkusen’s Leon Bailey is eligible to represent England, but it seems unlikely that the 20-year-old will play for Jamaica, his country of birth, any time soon.

His stepfather and agent Colin Butler is currently locked in a dispute with the Jamaican Football Federation and Bailey’s international allegiance is at stake, with tenuous links to Belgium and Malta touted up.

Bailey’s grandparents are believed to hold British passports too, though Fifa’s eligibility laws state that if a player wishes to switch allegiances, biological relatives must have been “born on the territory” in question.

Nevertheless, Southgate said this week that the FA are monitoring Bailey’s situation and if it emerges he can represent England, 11 goals in 26 games for Leverkusen this season suggests he could be worth the gamble.

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