Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
SOUTHGATE LADS MAY NOT MAKE IT
LIKE everyone else, I was encouraged and pleased by Gareth Southgate’s boldness in bringing so many youngsters into his squad.
Even if many people have ignored the fact he really didn’t have much option!
There’s no point in us getting carried away, though.
There were some really pleasing performances by a couple of the new boys, and it was heartening to see us fight so well against teams as good as Germany and Brazil.
Yet, does anyone really now see us as the match of those two nations? Nope. Not a chance.
Southgate’s next squad will tell us more about the direction he will take next summer, because then he will have back his big-hitters – and I say that in an English, not world, context – and then we’ll see how many of the new faces are still around.
I feel a couple of them will go and provide options for the summer in Russia.
Marcus Rashford (above) looked good again, and I think the 20-year-old is guaranteed to be heading to the finals.
But don’t forget, quite a few of the players, who will be returning, are pretty young anyway.
Dele Alli is only six months older than Rashford, and Harry Kane – at 24 – is hardly a veteran.
I know Tammy
Abraham and Dominic Solanke added a bit of freshness, but they are probably long-term options, and it would be a surprise if they were in the next squad.
Joe Gomez did well and now he’s the name on everyone lips.
Personally, I’ve always thought he is going to be a top-class defender.
But don’t forget, this is the same Joe Gomez who was part of a Liverpool defence that was getting slaughtered just a few weeks ago.
You can’t put that much pressure on a young player who’s hardly played at the top level.
With England playing three centre-backs, his versatility in being able to play at full-back will help him get in the squad for next summer and he should get the chance at Liverpool now to make himself an automatic choice.
But I don’t think many will emerge like him.
There is always one who comes out of the shadows and stakes a claim, and I’m sure it will happen again.
Perhaps it can be Ruben LoftusCheek, who did some good things in a problem position for England. He has only played a handful of games for Palace on loan, though.
Central midfield is an area where the managers tend to look for players with the knowledge and experience to implement their instructions to the letter, which is probably why a tactician such as Antonio Conte is not yet ready to play LoftusCheek regularly.
One thing I would say, is no matter how many of the kids do come through in time for next summer, it doesn’t give the team an automatic right to compete with the best in the world.
You need a manager who can give them the platform to perform and mould them together into an authentic unit.
This is where Gareth Southgate must build on the encouraging decisions he took last week.