Southgate may be forced into picking players on cup form
Coach in quandary over those lacking game-time Loftus-cheek hoping to start in Europa League
Gareth Southgate has hinted his England options are so limited that he is prepared to pick players on the back of Europa League and Carabao Cup appearances, despite reiterating his warning that those who continue to sit on the bench cannot be sure of their international places.
Ruben Loftus-cheek, Fabian Delph and Danny Welbeck all started their first game of the season in England’s 1-0 friendly victory over Switzerland on Tuesday night, having been left on the sidelines by their clubs. Goalscorer Marcus Rashford has now started more England games than Manchester United matches this season and the issue could cause Southgate a big headache ahead of his next squad announcement for the Uefa Nations League double-header against Croatia and Spain next month.
But Rashford, Loftus-cheek, Delph and Welbeck could all be back in Southgate’s squad without starting a single Premier League game between now and the trip to Croatia on Oct 12.
Loftus-cheek and Welbeck are part of Chelsea and Arsenal’s Europa League squads and their campaigns start next week against PAOK Salonika and Vorskla Poltava, respectively. The Carabao Cup starts the following week, when all four players will hope to start in what could represent B-teams fielded by Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City and United.
“The younger ones is one matter, the older ones are a little bit different,” said Southgate. “Over the next few weeks, what we are hoping is that we have given them some minutes, they go back to their clubs better prepared for when they get their opportunity and it gives them a better chance of staying in the team.
“They are going to have the League Cup, hopefully European football, so there is more opportunity that some of the squads will get rotated. Three weeks into the season is one thing, seven weeks into the season and they have not played, it is even more complicated.
“They understand it is difficult to pick players if we are seven, eight weeks into the season and they are