England start their World Cup campaign in less than a fortnight when they head out to face Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha.
Gareth Southgate will no doubt be stressing about his starting line-up for the contest, but before that he must name his 26-man squad, expected this Thursday (November 10).
This is the most unpredictable World Cup in living memory due to its mid-season placement, and with injuries rearing up more than ever, it also makes squad selection much harder.
Nonetheless, Platform’s crack team have put the big decisions under the knife, and here are our calls for who should get the ticket to Qatar…
Henry Green
Picking just 26 players to fit into the side proved rather difficult and really put Southgate’s job into perspective; the difficulty of choosing players based on club form, international form and other factors left me constantly chopping and changing.
With that said, here’s the squad I selected.
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Kyle Walker, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Kieran Trippier, Luke Shaw, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Ben White, Fikayo Tomori, James Tarkowski, Ryan Sessegnon
Midfielders: Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, Mason Mount, Jude Bellingham, James Maddison
Forwards: Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish, Phil Foden, Tammy Abraham, Callum Wilson
Shock omission: Ivan Toney
Injury uncertainty means there are a couple of shock omissions in the team, with England regulars such as Ben Chilwell and Bukayo Saka not making my team.
Ivan Toney is a player I have followed fairly closely during his career.
From his brace for Scunthorpe against Bradford in 2017, to that record-breaking season in the Championship for Brentford, his brilliance and talent has been ever-present.
However, Toney proves a risk as he may take time to bed into the squad, while he’s also rather similar in style to Harry Kane and Tammy Abraham.
Toney’s penalty prowess is a tempting prospect, however, is not enough to take a place in my England squad.
Wildcard: Ryan Sessegnon
With Chilwell’s injury ruling him out of the World Cup, I have selected Sessegnon as cover left-back ahead of the likes of Tyrick Mitchell.
Sessegnon has provided healthy competition to Tottenham’s backline and continues to quietly impress, having featured 14 times for Spurs this season.
His ability to play in a back five and a possible link with Spurs teammate Kane means Sessegnon could prove an astute addition.
Must start: Jude Bellingham
Bellingham has always been highly rated since he became a regular in Birmingham City’s side, but had failed to significantly impress me until recently.
However, Bellingham has come on in leaps and bounds with his performances for Borussia Dortmund.
The 19-year-old’s box-to-box style has a unique position in England’s midfield and Bellingham would act as a crucial foil to Declan Rice’s holding role.
Will Hugall
When it comes to my squad – and hopefully to Gareth Southgate’s – I want us to have a clear plan of how we’re planning and the selection of individuals to be based off that.
In that interest, I’m saying that our starting formation for most games during this World Cup will be a 3-4-1-2, alternating to a 4-3-3 when required.
I need flexibility and strength in depth, so here are my choices:
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Kyle Walker (dependent on fitness), John Stones, Harry Maguire, Eric Dier, Kieran Trippier, Luke Shaw, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ben White, Fikayo Tomori
Midfielders: Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, Mason Mount, Jude Bellingham, James Ward-Prowse, James Maddison
Forwards: Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Ivan Toney, Dominic Solanke
Shock omission: Tammy Abraham
As good as he is, Abraham’s stats this season really don’t show a man in form. He’s scored just twice in Serie A and once in the Europa League for Jose Mourinho’s Roma side.
I need a striker who can come on and either supplement Harry Kane’s game or give us a different outlet. In my opinion, there are better options for Southgate than Abraham in this regard.
Wildcard: Dominic Solanke
In the interest of goals, I’ve plumped for Bournemouth’s Dom Solanke as my Abraham replacement.
He’s been in fine form on the south coast, and the variety of his finishes really impresses me.
Be it inside or outside the box, a header or a volley, Solanke has it all in his locker and I’d love to see him given the opportunity to impress.
Must start: Raheem Sterling
Contrary to recent media reports, Sterling is a vital and undroppable component of how England play.
We have no other player who is so determined to stretch defences, whether running in behind or stepping through the gears in a foot race.
His play on the edge of the box, where England so often freeze up, is also underrated.
Fundamentally, Sterling is the most forward-thinking player in our side, so he’s a must-start; preferably partnering Kane with James Maddison in behind for me.
Gianluca Spataro
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Kyle Walker, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Eric Dier, Luke Shaw, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Ben White, Fikayo Tomori
Midfielders: Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, Mason Mount, Jude Bellingham, James Maddison
Forwards: Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Tammy Abraham, Jarrod Bowen, Ivan Toney
Shock omission: Conor Gallagher
Wildcard: Trent Alexander-Arnold
Must start: Bukayo Saka
In my opinion, this set of players would be a good choice for Southgate and England going to Qatar.
Fikayo Tomori at the back is a no-brainer next to John Stones, as I believe they would work well together. Tomori offers pace and strength, while Stones will win those aerial battles and clear the ball away from danger.
At right-back, I can see Kieran Trippier slotting into the starting line-up nicely with his exceptional recent form with Newcastle. I would expect him to get a few assists in the tournament.
Luke Shaw, meanwhile, is pretty much the only candidate on the left, but Ben White could perhaps be pushed to right-back with Trippier at left-back if needed.
In an ideal situation, I think Trippier could play left-back and Kyle Walker on the right – if fit – and this would be a decent combination for England.
James Maddison is realistically also a must-have.
He’s been very influential in getting Leicester City out of the Premier League’s bottom three and I believe him to be in better form now than possibly any England midfielder other than Bellingham.
Finally, in the strike force, Bukayo Saka on the right is my ‘must start’.
I can see him getting into the box a lot during the group stages of the tournament, hopefully granting him that confidence ready for the knockout stages, and can also see him assisting Harry Kane well.
I would really like to see Kane, Phil Foden and Saka up top together as I believe they will be extremely creative on the wings and feed Kane to score. Both can track back and help the defence if needed too.
Overall, England should have faith in their younger players and Southgate should take a risk and use them to succeed, as they can be guided by the experienced players at the back and Kane up top.
Tom Kitchin
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Kyle Walker, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Eric Dier, Kieran Trippier, Luke Shaw, Ben White, Fikayo Tomori, Tyrick Mitchell
Midfielders: Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, Mason Mount, Jude Bellingham, Kalvin Phillips, James Maddison
Forwards: Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Calum Wilson, Ivan Toney
Shock omission: Trent Alexander-Arnold.
This was a very tricky decision and will be a tricky decision too for Southgate.
In some ways, Trent is one of England’s best players, but with other right-backs available and his defending sometimes questionable, Southgate often hasn’t selected the Liverpool man despite his incredible passing and crossing ability.
Kieran Trippier is likely to be first-choice right-back, and with Kyle Walker expected to be fit and Ben White playing very well in that position for Arsenal and also being able to play in central defence, it’s hard to see how one of the country’s most popular players is going to be picked.
That is unless Southgate takes him as someone to come off the bench to deliver a magic moment.
Wildcard: James Maddison.
Maddison only has one England cap to his name which came back in 2019, but this season he has been on fire in a Leicester City team that has often struggled.
He has six goals and four assists in 12 Premier League appearances in 2022/23, also boasting the most goal involvements of any English player bar Harry Kane since the start of last season.
Whether he starts is another matter, but because he’s in the form of his life and has continuously shown he’s an incredibly gifted player, for me, he goes to Qatar.
Must start: Bukayo Saka.
Saka has been in superb form this season and has been a staple on the right side of an Arsenal team that currently sits top of the league.
He looks sharp every time he steps onto the pitch and played a crucial role too in England’s comeback against Germany in September.
Therefore, he must be starting in attack along with the certain picks of Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling.
Feature Image Credit: BBC Sport YouTube