Southgate fires Euros fitness warning to England stars as big names face axe
Gareth Southgate has warned that fitness will be a priority when he is deciding on his 23-man England squad for the Euros.
Nations were allowed to take 26 men to last winter’s World Cup - and Southgate took a huge gamble on James Maddison which backfired when the midfielder was unable to play in the tournament because of an ankle injury. Southgate knows he cannot take many risks going into next summer’s finals in Germany - and admitted that versatility will also be at the forefront of his thinking when he is making his selection.
Southgate said: “It will be a different thought process because you’ve had that leeway in the last couple of tournaments to take players that weren’t going to be fit for the first couple of games. Or a bit of cover in certain positions that you might or might not have needed.
“This time the physical conditioning of players is going to be really important. There must be an ability for players to bat out six, seven games. We know, having been to the end of two tournaments, that physically the demands are far greater than we would have known had we not been through that experience.
“So we know that (being fit) is a huge requirement. If you can only take two for each position, players that are adaptable is also helpful. Players that can play more than one position is helpful. But equally players who are physically vulnerable, we will have got to think very carefully about. I wouldn’t say all 23 have to be fit, but we can take far fewer gambles than we were able to take for the last two tournaments where it was 26.”
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James Maddison didn't play a minute for England in Qatar (Getty Images)Southgate’s confirmation that versatility is a key factor is good news for the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, John Stones, Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier.
Left-backs Luke Shaw and Ben Chilwell are currently sidelined by injuries that have limited their availability to England, while right-back Reece James felt continuing his return to fitness with Chelsea would be better than joining up with the squad for the final two qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia.
Southgate will prioritise fitness when naming his squadSouthgate’s reluctance to select Raheem Sterling since the forward opted to leave the squad in Qatar means he is running out of time to convince the England boss to change his mind. Mason Mount has hardly featured at Manchester United since his £55million move from Chelsea. Southgate has stuck with Harry Maguire and Kalvin Phillips despite both having issues with United and Manchester City. But Mount is faced with greater competition for his place and needs minutes on the pitch at Old Trafford to stake his claim.
England will face Brazil and Belgium in two prestigious friendlies at Wembley in the spring. Southgate wants another two matches to prepare for the Euros at the end of the Premier League season - and the FA are deciding on whether to take those games away from the capital.
Southgate said: “We would be looking for a couple of friendlies because by the time the Premier League season finishes, I think players will physically need a game. We are working those things through. We’ve got an outline plan but the detail relies on other things falling into place and also the draw for the Euros.”
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