On Tuesday, Gareth Southgate will announce his preliminary England squad for Euro 2024 and will allow his injured defensive players a chance to demonstrate their readiness. The biggest concern for Southgate is the left-back position and specifically with Luke Shaw’s fitness.
The manager of England expresses satisfaction with Uefa’s approval of maintaining 26-man squads for the finals instead of returning to the previous 23-man rule. During a coaches meeting in April, he expressed his support for this decision due to his concerns about the injury situation of several players. He gave his backing to the move, as reported by The Guardian in March 2024.
Beginning with Shaw, the preferred left-back, who has been sidelined from Manchester United since February 18th due to a muscular issue, and also includes Ben Chilwell.
The left-back of Chelsea, who was part of the starting lineup for England in the friendly matches against Brazil and Belgium in March, has only made two short appearances as a substitute for his club since then. He was included in the match-day squad for the game against Brighton last Wednesday but did not play, and then was absent for the game against Bournemouth on Sunday due to being ill.
Manager Southgate has expressed further worries about United’s defender Harry Maguire, who is currently facing a calf injury and is doubtful for the upcoming FA Cup final against Manchester City this Saturday. Another central defender, Marc Guehi, recently made his comeback for Crystal Palace after being out for three months due to a knee injury. Guehi played his first match since recovering against Aston Villa on Sunday, as reported by The Guardian.
The possibility of including Eric Dier, a centre-half from Bayern Munich, and Eberechi Eze, an attacking midfielder from Crystal Palace, in the squad for the upcoming Euro finals is being considered by Southgate. The squad is expected to have a minimum of 30 players and will be reduced after England’s last warm-up match against Iceland on 7 June at Wembley. Additionally, they will play Bosnia & Herzegovina at St James’ Park on 3 June before their first group game against Serbia on 16 June.
It is anticipated that Southgate will include Shaw and other players who have concerns about their physical condition in the preliminary squad. In the past two tournaments, where 26-man squads were allowed, he has brought on players who were still recovering from injuries: Maguire and Jordan Henderson for Euro 2020, and Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips for the 2022 World Cup. Despite missing the first two games, all of them made valuable contributions.
The concern surrounding Shaw, who is not expected to participate in the FA Cup final, is the extent of his game time in a season plagued by injuries – 15 matches for United and none for England – and if he can recover his top form. Southgate’s alternative option for the left-back position is Newcastle’s Kieran Trippier, who is better suited for the right side. Trippier seems to be favored over Chilwell for the left-back spot.
Since joining Bayern in January from Tottenham, Dier has been exceptional, particularly in the Champions League. Despite only playing for 37 of his 49 caps, Southgate is highly impressed with Dier’s work ethic and dedication. Dier’s last appearance for Southgate was during the 2022 World Cup. As for Eze, he has been a standout player for Palace and Southgate’s assistant, Steve Holland, was present at the Villa match on Sunday where Eze scored two goals.
Trent Alexander-Arnold is expected to take on the midfield position alongside Declan Rice instead of Henderson, as Phillips has become less prominent. There are concerns about the fitness of Anthony Gordon, who was absent from Newcastle’s match against Brentford on Sunday due to an achilles problem. Additionally, he did not join the team for their end-of-season friendly against Spurs in Melbourne on Wednesday.
The decision to include James Trafford, Burnley’s goalkeeper, as the third option for Southgate is currently being considered. This is due to Nick Pope being back from injury and Sam Johnstone being unavailable. Jordan Pickford holds the position of No. 1 goalkeeper, with Aaron Ramsdale as his backup.
The Bosnia game will see players from both Southgate’s United and City teams join up a day or two prior, while Jude Bellingham from Real Madrid, who will be competing in the Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund on 1 June, will only arrive shortly before the Iceland match.
