England Manager Gareth Southgate has named his 25-man squad for the upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia. While Eberechi Eze and Lewis Dunk have earned call-ups, Raheem Sterling has been left out.
Sterling has struggled with form and fitness this season after moving from Manchester City to Chelsea in a £47.5 million deal last summer. Across all competitions, he has registered nine goals and four assists in 37 appearances. Sources have informed ESPN that Sterling, who has 82 caps, remains committed to England and his omission is a mutual decision based on managing his body ahead of the next season.
Southgate stated at a news conference, “He’s not happy physically with his condition, he’s been carrying a hamstring problem. He really wasn’t in consideration. We didn’t get to the point of whether he should be in or out. He doesn’t think he’s operating at the level he needs, so that was the conversation I had with him.”
Crystal Palace’s Eze, who has scored six goals in eight games, has been rewarded for his performance. Although he missed out on being part of England’s provisional squad for Euro 2020 after suffering an Achilles injury, Southgate said, “We’ve liked him for a long time. He has finished the season really strongly. He can play in a couple of positions across that attacking line. He is a goal threat.”
Brighton’s Dunk, who earned his first call-up in four-and-half years, has also been included in the squad. Aston Villa’s Tyrone Mings, whose last cap came in March 2022 against Cote d’Ivoire, has rejoined the team. Meanwhile, Nick Pope, Ben Chilwell, and Mason Mount will not be participating due to injuries. Eze’s Palace teammate Sam Johnstone has been included in the team, along with Callum Wilson, who was selected after Ivan Toney was banned for eight months for breaking Football Association rules on betting.
The timing of the international double-header is awkward for Southgate as it comes more than two weeks after the end of the Premier League season and just six days between the Champions League final and England’s first match against Malta. Southgate was asked about the level of motivation for players at the end of a gruelling season which also featured the first-ever winter World Cup. He said, “I don’t think the rest of the world will be doing that this summer, and we’ve played North Macedonia twice at home and never beaten them. So, I think we could easily fall into that trap.”
He continued, “To be a top team, if we want to be European champions, we’ve got to nail the big games like we did in March, and you’ve got to make sure you nail the more complicated ones because everybody has the view that you’ve just given. It is a good test of commitment, of togetherness. We don’t want to let each other down and keep progressing as a team.”
England Squad:
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Aaron Ramsdale, Sam Johnstone
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Lewis Dunk, Marc Guehi, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Eberechi Eze, Conor Gallagher, Jordan Henderson, James Maddison, Kalvin Phillips, Declan Rice
England Manager Gareth Southgate has chosen his 25-man squad for the upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers. While Raheem Sterling has been left out due to struggling with fitness and form, Eberechi Eze and Lewis Dunk have been rewarded for their performances. Southgate emphasizes the importance of winning tough matches to progress as a team and become European champions.
Leave a Reply